Officer Diggs
by Katlana Child
Summary: Mal never liked dogs. In fact, he could barely stand them, what with their drool and awful smelling breath. But when he saves a dog near to death, will all of that change? Especially when the dog becomes Mal's other partner?
1. Chapter 1

**Hey guys! Ok, so it's 4 in the morning and I have a bunch of crap to do tomorrow. So I need some sleep. Anyway, I promised I would give a shout-out to everyone because honestly, I was having a really bad Friday and then I re-read the reviews and I grinned. (If you want to know details, I'll tell you this: My Mal actor cancelled on me and not only that, but I felt like a total idiot and such. Then my friend wrote a song for me ((gotta love those crazy friends)) called 'It's Okay Babeeee' and that's all the song says. Yeah, I'm 14, I shouldn't be worrying about this stuff. :) ) So, again, thank you for brightening my day with a review. You helped me pull through Friday.**

**And, here's a little background to this story: I wrote part of it on my birthday on my iPod. I did plan to post it on FanFiction once I finished, but all of my iPod stories got deleted. So I decided to write this. Also, it's a little dedication to the most awesomest uncle in the world. (He's a cop.) and his dog. I thought this story was absolutely perfect because my uncle, in a way, is just like Mal.**

**This story takes place, of course, while Mal and Natara are dating. There will be some Maltara, but as you have seen, I'm not the best with writing Fluff. In fact, I feel like an idiot when I try to write kissing scenes. Again, I must state I am more into the blood and guts stuff rather than happy endings.**

**I didn't bother editing because it's four in the morning and I want to go to sleep. Chapters are soon to follow and I'm getting more ideas. ((And if you didn't see my post on the FaceBook page, I really think a great song to describe Maltara is Taylor Swift's I'd Lie. I get chills every time I hear it.)) Read and review? Thanks!**

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><p>Officer Diggs<p>

Mal never liked dogs. In fact, he could barely stand them, what with their drool and awful smelling breath. He was confused as to why his partner, and girlfriend, Natara Williams loved them so much. She always ranted on about how when she was little, she wanted a little Dachshund Puppy. She never got the puppy, however, but a cat instead. She had at least told him this story a couple of times. Either she was hinting that for their upcoming six month anniversary she wanted a puppy, or she just liked puppies. Mal hoped for the second.

Late on September night, Mal sifted through old case files, trying to organize his crime scene papers. Captain Yeong had scolded him earlier for his desk's horrible state. Natara walked into his office, clutching her bag close.

"Hey, I'm heading home," she said.

Mal looked up from his clutter and smiled. "I'm guessing you want something before you go?"

Natara laughed slightly. "A little parting gift would be nice..."

He stood up and walked over to her. They were inches apart. Natara closed her eyes, expecting a kiss, but instead, Mal shoved a stack of papers into her hands.

"Can you throw those away for me, Nat?"

Feeling slightly rejected, Natara nodded and grasped the papers. She was about to turn away when Mal stopped her.

"You forgot your parting gift," he said quietly and they shared a tender kiss. Once they broke apart, Natara smiled at Mal. "Love you," he said, holding onto her waist.

"I love you too," Natara replied, her hands resting on his shoulders. It wasn't a surprise to anyone how much time Mal and Natara spent together. Ken kept predicting a wedding, while Kai predicted kids.

"Don't stay up to long, alright?" Natara continued.

"No problem." He kissed her shortly and they set off on their ways for the night. Mal walked over to his desk and sat back down, admiring the moment. It had taken him so long to ask Natara for that one date. That date led to several others. Mal and Natara were practically inseparable.

Just as Mal was about to close shop for the night, his phone rang. Not bothering to look at the Caller ID, he answered.

"Detective Fallon," he said quickly, grabbing his car keys.

"Mal? It's Anna," his colleague replied. "We need assistance down by the bay."

"What happened? Is there a shoot out?"

"No, but there has been an accident, and we need you to help us out."

Mal sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose. "I'll be over in fifteen minutes," he said into the phone.

"Thank you, Mal! We'll try to keep our vic alive until you get here." And she hung up without a final word.

Mal arrived at the bay shortly after. It had begun to rain, and he cursed as he almost slipped on the slick road.

"Detective, you made it," Anna called out.

"Of course I did. So who's dead?"

"No one, at least, not yet," Anna said and her eyes wandered over to one of the police vehicles. Mal followed her gaze and noticed the huge dent in the front.

"Officer Willis, what happened?" he asked calmly.

"Joe was driving," she began, and Joe interrupted.

"Why do you always blame me?"

"Because you're an easy target? I don't know! Anyway, Joe was driving and we see something running across the road."

"Please tell me you did not run over someone," Mal hissed.

"No! Well...It's not really a someone...more of a _something._"

"What is it?" Mal asked and an officer appeared clutching a rag to his hand. "And you won't let me shoot it because..." he asked Anna sternly.

"Detective Smith, what happened to your hand?" Mal asked.

"That stupid mutt Joe hit bit me! He's aggressive for a dog in pain."

Mal faced Anna. "You hit a dog?"

"Joe was driving! But yes, we did."

Mal rubbed the bridge of his nose. "This is not happening. This is not happening..."

"Are you alright, Detective?" Anna asked, placing a hand on his shoulder. "You seem...upset?"

"More like peeved. Show me where our _friend_ is."

"Alright," Detective Smith responded, "but whatever you do, do not pet it."

"I'll take your word for it," Mal grumbled as he and Anna walked to the front of the car. And like stated, there was a large German Shepard lying on its side. It wasn't whimpering, which surprised Mal. After all, if he had just gotten hit by a car, he would at least whimper, but nothing more.

"Do you know where he's from?" Mal asked, observing the scene.

"He has a collar, but none of us have been able to see it," Anna replied and Mal nodded.

"Well then, this shouldn't be that hard. Do any of you have something to knock it out?"

"We're not doctors, Detective," Joe grumbled, shaking his head. "All we have are our tasers. And I know for one thing, I do not want to taser the dog and later find out that it is immune and have it kill me."

"Joe, stop talking," Anna muttered. One of the newer officers approached Mal. He had only talked to her once. He knew one thing though; she loved dogs.

"Officer Young, is it?" Mal asked and the young officer nodded. Now it was coming back. She had saved that kid from being kidnapped. She was Joe's partner.

"Might I add a suggestion?" Officer Young asked. She pushed her glasses up slightly, and Mal smiled slightly.

"Be my guest."

"Injured animals are dangerous to approach," she informed and Mal nodded.

"Any ideas?"

"I was getting to that, Detective. You're approaching the dog in a threatening manner. You need to be slow, cautious, and caring." She knelt slowly next to the injured dog, which growled angrily. Mal bit his lower-lip, hoping the officer wasn't completely stupid. She slowly reached out to pet the dog and it didn't stop her. He watched her every move, getting ready to strike if needed. Once her hand made contact with its fur, the dog stopped growling and began to whimper. Mal nodded.

"Seems easy enough. Is that what I need to do?" he asked.

"I also seem to have word that you are taking him to the vet?" she asked, not bothering to look up at him.

"I don't remember agreeing..."

"Oh, yeah. Mal, could you take the dog to the vet's office? We all need to get home to our families," Joe asked.

"Natara is going to kill me for falling asleep in the office again," Mal grumbled, "but if it means saving a mutt's life, then so be it."

He repeated Officer Young's actions, but he must have gone to fast because in a split second, the dog snapped at Mal, drawing blood.


	2. Chapter 2

**Hey there! :D Thought I needed to update since I have nothing else to do. Oh, and I bet you're thinking, Officer Young is going to steal Mal from Natara. Well, you'll have to find out, now. :D And she is on the way of becoming a major character, (we may even learn her first name! Omigosh!) Also, I just want to let you guys know the depression phase of rejection is gradually floating by. Tomorrow I see my actor and I am going to feel like a total idiot for even getting upset. (I think you guys will adore him! There's a reason I chose him for Mal. ;) ) I should be feeling like myself in no time again. And filming is planned to start this week. (Yay!) So I have a lot on my plate again. Good news, though. We have testing all week and studying is kind of unnecessary since all of the questions are random. And my teacher said due to testing, homework will remain on the 'DL'.**

**I must say, this story is not going the way I first planned, which is great in my opinion. It's a new way for me to experiment with different plots. Also, it is very rushed and I apologize. I know, I should stop rushing on all of my stories, but come on, I love hearing what you guys have to say and impatience decides to over-rule.**

**Also, must say, very excited for a COD episode tomorrow...er...today. (It's 12:15 AM right now, so I'm guessing it is now the 23rd of January.) I've heard so much about this new girl, Blaire and pretty bummed out about another thing, but I won't say, because some haven't played that chapter yet. Neither have I, but I read spoilers. I'm such a bad girl sometimes. :D**

**Anyways...read and review? Constructive criticism is also well-liked. Thank you all for reading! :D**

**-Katlana C.**

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><p>Mal yanked back his hand and held back a cry of pain. Now his hand was identical to every dim-wit who tried to approach the dog.<p>

"You alright?" Officer Young asked, her tone very plain. That's something Mal didn't really like about her. She was so...gloomy? She was into Gothic things, which didn't really lighten her mood.

"Well, if there's one thing I can say," Mal grumbled, clutching his hand close as Anna ran to get some bandages. "That dog is or was a police dog."

"How could you tell?" she asked, tilting her head just slightly.

"I know for a fact that a normal dog does not bite _that _hard."

"Well, at least we know it doesn't have rabies," Anna muttered as she began to wrap Mal's hand up.

"Why don't I come with you to the vet's," Officer Young said. "I could help take the dog to and from and once it's knocked out, you can handle everything from there."

"And you're not in charge of taking the dog because..." Mal asked and Officer Young just shrugged.

"It's character building," she replied coldly and her attention returned towards the incapacitated mutt. She played with his collar and smiled. "His name is Diggs," she said. "Actually, Officer Diggs."

"Point proven," Mal grumbled. "Ok, Officer Young, take our little friend to my car. I need to make a quick phone call."

"Make that two," she said, "his collar says the San Francisco K-9 Institute. You might want to inform them that their dog has escaped."

"Fair enough," Mal answered as he opened his phone. Officer Young repeated the phone number of the Institute and Mal waited anxiously for an answer. He began to worry the sixth time they didn't answer. He resulted to calling Amy.

"Amy?" he asked as soon as the ringing stopped.

"This is she," the data analyst replied cheerfully.

"Hey, can you run a search for the San Francisco K-9 Institute? We might have one of their patients on our hands."

"Is that what the assistance call was all about?"

"Yeah. Turns out, Joe isn't a good driver. Oh, and what is the best solution for dog bites?"

"Did the dog bite you?"

"Unfortunately, yes. We're almost positive it isn't rabid because it's a police dog. A couple of us, actually, were bitten."

"I am not entirely sure. At least put some ice on it and come back to the lab so I can check it out. Kai is more into that stuff though. So, it's called the K-9 Institute?"

"_San Francisco _K-9 Institute," Mal corrected and looked back at his hand. It was slightly swollen, but nothing totally out of the ordinary. He tried moving his fingers as Amy processed the search. Diggs had bitten into the back of his hand, so it shouldn't have effected his fingers, but he found it especially difficult to move his ring finger. He thought of many possible diseases Diggs could have transferred into his body and that made him loathe the dog even more.

"Aha!" Amy cried, scaring Mal. He jumped slightly and sighed with relief.

"Amy! Don't do that!" he said, trying to recapture his breath.

"Do what?" Amy asked innocently.

"Nevermind...what did you find?"

"Well, it says here that the _San Francisco K-9 Institute _is a housing system for troubled police dogs. Some have psychological disorders while others were broken down into weak dogs. Hmm, that's odd."

"What?" Mal asked quickly, already knowing how much crap he was getting himself into.

"In a news article from last month, it says the institution was closed due to health concerns and the death of an employee. The place was abandoned and no one has been inside since."

"Kind of sounds like your regular ghost story; some dude dies and the building is suddenly haunted."

"But here's the thing Mal, some of those dogs are vicious..."

"No kidding," Mal growled, opening and closing his injured hand.

"The reason they never put any of the dogs down is because they all believed in second chances. A lot of them thought that with the right amount of training and care, they would go back to the way they used to be."

"Yeah, well apparently, it didn't work. I'm sure the employee can vouch for that."

"This isn't a joking matter, Mal! This is some serious stuff. If any of those dogs are loose in the city, it could mean danger to the citizens of San Francisco."

"Well, I'm headed to the vets office," Mal sighed. "I'll keep an eye out for any criminal looking dogs."

Amy sighed heavily. "Alright. I'll see you soon."

"Thanks Amy."

He hung up and walked back to his car, where Officer Young had already placed Diggs in. He was lounging in the back seat while she sat in the passenger seat. "Did the Institute answer?" she asked.

"No," Mal replied in a stoney tone. "In fact, the whole place was abandoned around a month ago, which could mean that killer dogs are on the loose."

"I'll check out the institute building after we send Diggs in to get treated. You're welcome to join me."

"You know, as much as I would _love_ to stay up all night tending a dog and searching for serial killer mutts, I have a girlfriend who gets really ticked if I fall asleep on the job. I'll stay at the vets and maybe get an ounce of sleep before work tomorrow. I'm sure Joe wouldn't mind tagging along though."

Officer Young scoffed. "And run over another dog, I'll pass. I can search on my own, then."

Mal shrugged. "Alright then. Now let's get this puppy fixed."

Officer Young, for the first time, giggled at one of Mal's jokes. It was like a Christmas Miracle. "I have to admit, Detective," she said, smiling, "that one was one of your better jokes."

Mal chuckled. "Why thank you," he replied. Maybe she wasn't as bad as all of the colleagues had said. After all, if Kai harbored an attraction towards her, something must be up. Though Mal had the feeling she wasn't a fugitive.


	3. Chapter 3

**Starting to like having Officer Young around. :) Even with the crappy attitude she has towards Mal. And just a little note, Anna Emerson does make a reappearance in this chapter clearly for my entertainment because I got extremely bored with this story.**

**And good news, I guess. I'm starting this story that was suggested about Mal playing in the SFPD Annual Football Game. Of course, it's dedicated to my uncle because of his little football battle with his department. Will there be Maltara Fluff? I'm planning on it. :) **

**Thinking of maybe updating every day, but then again, I don't keep those kind of promises. Anyway, thank you for the reviews! Crappy Monday turned into something nicer once I saw them. :D**

**I must give a special thank you out though. To: A bit of a nerd! You made me grin with your recent comment and I'm so glad that you care so much about a lot of the writers! It's great to have someone like you around making people feel great on their not-so-great days. (All of my reviewers make my day!) But again, thank you all.**

**OH! AND, in my last chapter, I talked about Mal's new partner...Blaire? Sorry about that. I totally meant Blaise. :D**

**I am not proud of this chapter, but I really want to get to the end. Well, anyways, I have 20 words to memorize for ASL! Until the next update...**

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><p>Officer Young had helped take Diggs into the vet's office while Mal stood on the side-lines. He vowed not to get near the dog until it was loopy. But then Officer Young pointed out that Diggs could be even more dangerous while under the influence of drugs.<p>

"He really is like a serial killer," Mal grumbled.

Officer Young didn't smile. _Maybe she's laughing on the inside,_ Mal thought, but the look on her face clearly stated that she did not like his attempt at the joke.

"Anyway, the vets have Diggs now," she continued, "I'm going to head to the institute and see if I can find anything. Good luck, Detective."

"Yeah," Mal called as she strolled away. "You too..."

He took a seat in the waiting room and stared ahead. He wasn't the only one here. Apparently, all sorts of people had pet trouble at three in the morning. A woman sat with her cat, who kept heaving and coughing. A young girl held a cage with a pet bird inside it; the bird was nearly bald and kept chirping wildly, which really ticked off Mal. He saw a few other dogs that just looked sick in general.

_Man,_ he thought, _these people are really dedicated to their animals. I sort of feel bad for coming under different circumstances._

"Hello!" a teenager greeted. She looked awfully familiar.

"Um...hey," Mal responded, not sure of what else to say. He tried racking his mind for possible answers. She had brilliant red hair, dark eyes...

"Detective Mal Fallon, right?" she asked and Mal raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah, and your name seems to have slipped my mind. I'm getting a Brittany..."

The girl paused and then nodded slowly. "Brittany Emerson? She...she was my sister."

It clicked. "Wait a second...Anna? Is that you? You look so...old now!"

Anna smiled shyly. "Yeah, I've been getting that a lot from any police officer I worked with during the MaskMaker Case. I didn't know you had a pet." She took a seat next to him and Mal shrugged.

"I don't. But we found one that had gotten hit by a police cruiser and since the cruiser just so happened to belong to the SFPD, we're in charge of fixing the mutt up. Why are you here?"

Anna sighed. "My cat, Charlie, he's really sick. Honestly, I don't think I can handle a death right now. I know it's been a year since Brittany was...killed, but we're all unsteady from what happened."

Mal felt a weird connection with Anna. It was kind of the same way with Officer Young, only he liked Anna a little more. She was actually talkative.

"If there's anything I can do to help you guys out, just give us a call, alright?" Mal said and Anna smiled.

"No problem. Do you clean gutters?"

Mal chuckled and shook his head. "Actually, no. But I know a preppy forensic tech who would just love to have an excuse to look through some leaves."

Anna giggled. They talked for awhile, catching up on the last year. She had asked several times about Natara, and when Mal announced their relationship status, she squealed. "It's meant to be!" she had said.

"Funny," he replied, "that's what everyone says."

Soon enough, the vet came back with Anna's cat and explained the problem. Mal didn't understand a lot of it, but the smile of relief on Anna's face made him grin.

"I'll see you around, Anna," Mal called and she waved before exiting.

He drifted off a few minutes later and was soon woken by the same vet who had taken care of Anna's cat.

"Mal Fallon?" he asked.

"That's me," Mal replied, rubbing his eyes. "How's Diggs?"

"He's recovering, but fine. He's knocked out right now, so we'll send him home like that. He needs plenty of rest though."

Mal hesitated to respond. "Well, you see here, Doc, Diggs isn't my dog."

"Really now?" the vet asked.

"Yeah, but if I do take him home, do you have a large, indestructible cage we can put him in."

"Of course, if you would feel more comfortable with that. Now, follow me into the back..."

Mal was surprised to see Diggs was still alive. He really shouldn't have been, counting the dog was a trained fighter. After being put in a large padded cage, a few doctors helped Mal set it in his car. Once the sunlight hit his face, he swore loudly. He had probably gotten three hours of sleep. Natara was going to _kill _him.

He took off minutes later and headed straight towards the hotel Natara stayed at. She ran out of the doors and straight towards Mal's car. "Hey!" she greeted happily. "Did you get..."

"Shhhhh..." Mal commanded at once. She gave him a confused look, but once she saw Diggs, she understood.

"Mal," she whispered, "what the heck is going on?"

"Last night, Joe hit a dog and it's been decided that I am its babysitter."

"Wait...last night? Mal, how long were you up?"

He didn't want to respond, but the look on Natara's face told him he had no choice.

"I got _some _sleep," Mal retorted and Natara sighed heavily.

"How much?"

"Three hours..."

"Of course you did..." Natara shook her head. "Mal, this is getting ridiculous. What happens if you fall asleep on the job? What will happen if you are too disoriented to focus while out on the field?"

"I don't know, but I'm guessing I'm screwed both ways," Mal muttered.


	4. Chapter 4

**Hey look! It's an update! I feel awesome about this story, just saying. :) It's moving along smoothly and I have to say, I am a little proud of this chapter. But I must warn ya'll...I tried to be funny again, so if you didn't crack a smile at all, I apologize for my failed attempt at humor. ;D**

**In other news, depression is almost gone. Still feeling a little upset today, but once my best guy friend started scaring the crap out of me every time we had a break, it got a little better. Especially when he tried to kill me with a plastic fork...that's a story for another time, though. :D Enjoy! (And thank you for all the reviews. I get a smile knowing that this story is liked. :) )**

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><p>Maria was shocked when Mal and Natara brought in the large cage with Diggs in it.<p>

"What on earth is going on here?" she asked, approaching the detectives.

"Well," Mal said, "what does it look like we're doing?"

"Dragging a mutt into my well-organized station," Maria growled. "Mal, is this an anniversary present or something? It could have stayed at home."

"Actually Captain," Mal said, rubbing the back of his neck, "The SFPD is in charge of the dog. Mostly me, since everyone suddenly has a family to go home to..."

"Suddenly," Maria repeated. "Is this about that 'emergency' call last night, Detective?"

"If I said yes, how would you react?" Mal asked and Maria sighed.

Maria sighed heavily. "And I'm guessing you didn't get that much sleep, either."

"You know, you're really good at the guessing game," Mal said and Natara hid her smile.

"This isn't a joke, Detective. Where are you going to put the mutt," Maria asked.

"He has a name," Natara added quickly and Mal sighed.

"Nat...right now, he's referred to as the mutt..."

"And should I refer to you as Detective from now on?" Natara asked, her tone serious. Mal hated it when she did that.

"His name is Diggs," Mal said, after examining Natara's face for any sign that she could be kidding. "He's an ex-police dog."

"Ex?" Maria asked. "What did he do?"

"We don't exactly know. The institute where he was held is shut down and all of the dogs seemed to have escaped."

"Actually, Detective," a voice said from behind and Mal jumped. He flipped around to face Officer Young.

"Oh my...Don't sneak up on me like that," he said, catching his breath.

"I apologize. Anyway, the Institute _is _abandoned, but the dogs haven't left," Officer Young informed. She held out a clipboard and Mal took it. "Twenty seven dogs," she said, nodding her head. "All every single one of them was there and they're all alive. They must have gotten into the food supply or something. They're weak though and none of them attacked me when I went in."

Mal glanced down at Diggs and noticed he was wagging his tail slightly. "Well, you seem to have a special connections with dogs, Officer. I mean, Diggs tried to eat my face last night and he's all cozy around you. I think he even likes Nat."

"You don't have a heart for animals, Detective," Young reported coldly. "That's probably why Kai's parakeet attacked you last Thursday."

Mal frowned slightly. "I wasn't the only one it attacked."

"But we all know now that Joe is just unfortunate with animals," Young replied, her voice now monotone. "If you're like this with animals, I can't imagine what you'll be like with your own kids."

Mal hesitated to throw back a reply. Maybe she was right...No, he wasn't going to let some intern officer tell him what he was and wasn't...Was he?

"That's not true," Natara muttered. "Mal's great with little kids. And I'm sure little kids love Mal."

"I see," Officer Young said and turned to Captain Yeong. "Anyway, Captain, as I was searching, I called in an Animal Control team. They said they weren't able to handle all the dogs. But they did give me an idea."

"I know what you're leaning towards, Officer, but we are not installing a K-9 Unit in the SFPD. I have a job to do and having to take care of dogs along with actual people...it's just not worth it."

"But Captain, these dogs were going to be given second chances..." Officer Young protested and Mal whispered to Natara,

"Is it just me, or is this beginning to sound _a lot _like the Maskmaker Case."

Natara shrugged it off, but to her, yes, it was. It was actually going beyond the point of creepy.

"I don't care, Officer! I have a business to run!" Captain Yeong replied to Officer Young's come-back. "There is no way I am taking in a bunch of other psychopath dogs."

"You believe in second chances though, right?"

"With humans, Officer. These dogs only got one chance. Also, if someone has been in an institute, we tend to not lean towards them in any way! I refuse to have any institutionalized humans or animals in my department."

"I know what happened with the Maskmaker, Captain. I'm not stupid. But I really believe we can help these dogs out!"

"I don't like it, and that's that. Even if I wanted to, we don't have that kind of money to build kennels and supply dog food. Unless someone were to come up to me with, say, $2500, then you could begin your little kennel. Now be on your way, Officer Young. I don't want to hear any more about the K-9 Unit."

Maria stormed off and Officer Young sighed. She then turned to Mal. "Detective..."

"No way I'm giving up $2500 to make kennels for dogs. Besides, you were mean to me earlier."

"Mal," Natara said warningly and she pulled out her own wallet. "I could possibly donate maybe half of the money," she said quickly. "After all, I do like dogs unlike some _heartless_ people."

"What kind of girlfriend calls their dashing boyfriend, _heartless_?" Mal asked.

"The kind of girlfriend that doesn't want a bunch of dogs to get killed for just being a stain to society." Natara paused and shook her head. "Wow, this is turning into the Maskmaker isn't it."

Mal shrugged. "All we need is a mask for Diggs and we're golden."


	5. Chapter 5

**Not my best work, but hey, it's been a crazy week. :D Update on Depression: I don't really have depression anymore, it's just the constant feeling of idiocy whenever I talk to him. Other than that, it's been great! **

**I think I should tell you guys the plastic fork story now, before you read this one. :) (Ready for a pretty long intro?)**

**My best guy friend, (my be fri (best friend) and I nicknamed him, Plastic Fork, due to this incident, but his name is Jacob.) decided to test out some 'Assassin Moves' during lunch on Monday. While I laughed with my friends and we talked of Cause of Death ((I've infected them :D )) Jacob was experimenting with his fork. I didn't see any of this. Finally, I hear the ominous sound of plastic hitting against wood and I turn my head and...BAM! The fork hits me directly in the forehead...pointy side. All the teachers and my friends were either freaking out or scolding Jacob, but I nearly wet myself laughing. I freakin love that kid. (He actually inspired some of this story. :) )**

**A little more about Plastic Fork: He's like my older brother. I love him, but nothing more than sisterly/brotherly love. We've known each other since we were five, we're now fourteen. He likes to hit on me...:) He makes everyone smile. And he's one of the nicest, most sensitive guys in my class. I enjoy eating lunch with him, (in fact, we ate lunch alone today while my friends were in a meeting. Figures I'm the only one from my group ((besides Plastic Fork)) that isn't in Student Council. Smh. :)**

**Hehe, and I got a request for this, (I'm sorry, I have short-term memory loss so I don't know who asked this, but thank you!) What is you're Maltara Playlist? For example;**

**Mine would be I'd Lie, Taylor Swift. (If it was Natara's P.O.V)  
>That's Love or Little Moments, Brad Paisley (If it was Mal's P.O.V)<br>****Just a Kiss, Lady Antebellum (If it was just describing their relationship entirely.)**

**What's yours?**

**Oh, and I need to add this. I poke fun at Joe a lot. Seriously, though, Joe is one of my favorites. :) He's such a beast and a bit of a comedian. (Though no one can beat Mal or Kai when it comes to comedy. :) )**

**Here's the story! Thanks for the reviews! I enjoy getting them! **

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><p>For the next few days, Officer Young took care of the dogs at the institute while Mal and Natara looked after Diggs, who only snarled at Mal.<p>

"I don't see why we can't give him to the local pound," Mal muttered as he lounged on the couch. Natara's head was on his lap.

"Because that's cruel," she replied. "He's a big sweetheart anyway."

"To you, maybe. But that dog 'effin hates me."

"He doesn't hate you," Natara said, smiling. "Maybe if you just softened up to him." She paused for a second and then sighed. "Are you still upset about what Officer Young said about the kid?"

"No," Mal growled, "I like humans more than animals. And besides, I will be the _perfect_ father no matter what that creepy Goth lady says."

Natara smiled. "As long as you're not upset." She looked over at Diggs, still lying in the cage. "He looks sad."

"Like the Beatles have said...Let it Be," Mal muttered and Natara looked up at him.

"You like the Beatles?" she asked.

"No...they were awful, but when you have a sister who's obsessed with every single song, you kind of learn a few things."

Natara sighed heavily and sat up. Mal, obviously, didn't like this and gave her a look of confusion.

"Is something wrong?" he asked.

"Just the fact that there's a sad little puppy..."

"Understatement," Mal interrupted. "That thing isn't a puppy and it most certainly isn't sad!"

"Maybe to you, but, come on, Mal! Look in its eyes. It's dying inside!"

Mal glanced at Diggs and shrugged. "Natara, I value your life, and I value mine. If we release that dog, we could be dead in a matter of seconds."

"He can barely walk," Natara stated.

"But he can bite," Mal added, "and that's enough for me to draw the line. I don't want you to get hurt."

"And I appreciate your concern, but I am not letting Diggs suffer."

Mal sighed, knowing there was no way to change her mind. Once she decided she was going to do something, there really was no way of changing her mind. Natara got off the couch and crawled over to Diggs. To Mal's surprise, he didn't growl. In fact, he wagged his tail slightly. Natara laughed quietly and unlocked the cage.

"It's a bad idea," Mal muttered and Natara shook her head. She opened the cage and Diggs looked up at her, almost as if he were smiling.

_That is just unfair,_ Mal thought. He watched as Diggs slowly limped out of the cage and towards Natara. He took in her scent and did what Mal did not expect; he licked her cheek.

"Natara, do you even know where his tongue has been?" Mal asked. "You know, he is a boy dog..."

"Mal," Natara cut in. "I don't want to hear it. But look at him. He's the sweetest doggy!" Natara scratched behind his ear, which Diggs seemed to like. "You know, he kind of reminds me of you. You get that exact same look on your face when..."

"Let's not talk about it," Mal interjected. "And this dog is nothing like me. First of all, I'm not stupid enough to run into a police car...And second, I am much more good-looking."

"I don't know, Mal," Natara said, smiling at Diggs. "You may have some competition."

"And what ticks me off the most is that you made me pay for the kennels," Mal included, frowning. "You know that means we just accepted a bunch of psycho dogs into the precinct."

"Relax, Mal. We still have a few months until the kennels are actually built and we can move the dogs in. Diggs should be fully healed by then, too!"

"Great...another thing to worry about," Mal muttered under his breath.

The next few months passed by all too quickly. In no time, Diggs was back on his feet, attacking Mal's shoes and peeing on the carpet; much to Mal's displeasure. Mal thought Diggs purposely tried to tick him off. When Mal found Diggs gnawing on the small box Mal was going to give Natara for her upcoming birthday, he drew the line.

"Stupid mutt," Mal growled as he ripped the box away. That would have been bad altogether, but Mal had punished Diggs enough that he wasn't going to bite for a while. Of course, he wasn't referring to animal cruelty...just a shock collar. "You know," he continued, "I worked over-night for a month to get Natara this, and you had to go and swallow the ring too."

Diggs growled in response, bearing his teeth. He still despised Mal.

"You know the ring was non-refundable, right? And I doubt they'll take back a ring that smells like dog sh..."

His phone rang, which stopped him. He sighed and looked at the Caller ID. It was Natara.

"Hello!" he answered, trying to act happy.

"Hey Mal! So, I was wondering if now was a good time to come over. I kind of have a surprise to show you," she responded.

"Anytime is a good time, Nat. Unless it's a Thursday...I loathe Thursdays."

Natara giggled. "Alright, alright. No Thursay's. I'll be over in a few minutes. Love you!"

"I love you too," Mal replied with a smile. He closed the phone and faced Diggs. "Natara is coming over. You better not screw this up."

Diggs barked loudly, and Mal narrowed his eyes. "You don't scare me." But inside, Mal was practically freaking out.

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><p><strong>((AN: This idea came to me a few nights ago that I should make Haltalia a little more different. Instead of posting whenever I can, I want to post after I finish a story. It's sort of like Side Stories. Creativity: I gots it. :D But seriously, I don't think I'll update Haltalia for awhile. Though, probably before this story ends, because when I wrote it on my iPod, it took way too long. I also have another story idea about a roller-rink+Maltara+SFPD ;D It's just an idea. Thanks for reading!))**


	6. Chapter 6

**It's a little shorter than the previous chapters, but I'm trying to finish this story so I can focus a little more on Hatalia and the SFPD Football story. (Which still needs a creative name, if ya'll are up to it. :D )**

**And I thought I needed to get back on my questioning phase. So, here's today's question;**

**(I don't know if I've already asked this)  
>What is your favorite Cause of Death Quote?<strong>

**I constantly repeat, 'Special Agent Hottie Boom Bottie.' :) How about you?**

**Here's today's chapter. Saturday I will probably NOT have a chapter up because rehearsals start. Let's just hope we can do this! Thanks for all the reviews! :D**

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><p>The doorbell rang clearly throughout the apartment, causing Diggs to bark. Mal ran to the door, only stopping to glance at himself in the mirror. He smiled at his appearance and threw open the door. He wasn't expecting a police dog to be sitting there, growling quietly. Natara stood behind the dog, beaming.<p>

"Hey Mal!" she called out. "This is Sasha."

"No. Way," Mal muttered.

"Isn't she just beautiful?" Natara asked, kneeling to her dog's height. "I begged the Captain to let me take one of the institute dogs as a secondary partner, you know, like Diggs."

Diggs pushed past Mal to see who was at the door. When he saw Sasha, he hesitated to respond. He was about to suggest that Natara take Sasha away before Diggs attacked, but it was too late. Diggs pounced on Sasha. Mal gasped, but Natara just smiled.

"Don't worry," she said, "they're just playing. They must know each other."

Diggs whimpered and nuzzled Sasha's nose. She added a shrill bark and they played around. Mal couldn't help but sigh heavily.

"I swear on all that's holy, if they have puppies, we're selling them."

Natara smiled and pulled Mal into a close hold. "Oh Mal," she said quietly.

Days later, Mal had actually managed to buy a new ring for Natara and prepared for her birthday dinner. Her birthday wasn't for another day, but he still liked knowing that he was prepared. He rehearsed in front of a mirror several times, biting his lower lip constantly and cursing about how stupid he sounded.

"I thought proposing wouldn't be this hard," he said to Ken, late that night. It turns out, Diggs wasn't too fond of Ken either.

"Well, it's much more different than in Sandra's case," Ken said. "I mean, you really love Natara, right?"

"More than I ever would," Mal muttered.

"And I know Natara loves you. Maybe a witty proposal isn't what you need. Maybe it should just be a normal outing. What are you doing for the date anyway?"

Mal sighed heavily. "Natara left that up to me to decide. I thought of a movie, but realized we had seen what we wanted to see already. I also thought of just dining at home, which she loves, but last time I tried, the macaroni caught on fire."

"You do realize that that sounds completely pathetic, right?"

"The macaroni bursting in flames." Ken nodded shortly. "Well, it is pretty scary, Ken."

"Sure it is," Ken retorted, grinning and shaking his head. "But what are you doing?"

"I'm taking her to the place where we first dined together; _Rip Van Wrinkles_."

"That's deep, man. Is Sean going to help you out with the proposal?"

"No way. I need to do this on my own."

"You're just going to drop down on one knee during dessert, aren't you."

"Pretty much."

"Brilliant plan," Ken said, with a chuckle. "What about the dogs? Where are they going to go?"

"Officer Young volunteered to take care of them for the night."

"Hey, at least you've got a plan. Now all you need is the courage and you're golden."

"I hope."


	7. Chapter 7

**The moment you've all been waiting for...the proposal! I might not be able to post another chapter until Sunday because I am heading out with some friends tonight and tomorrow morning, I have to prepare the house for my actors. :) I'm pretty pleased about that. Though, my Miguel Flores actor seemed pretty upset when he said he might not be able to make it after all. I felt really bad and told him that there were days where I was completely free and we could film/rehearse then. (I've known him for a long time. Not as long as Plastic Fork ( ;) ) But long enough for us to be cool with each other. AND I AM PLEASED TO ANNOUNCE THAT I NO LONGER FEEL LIKE AN IDIOT! :D My Mal actor and I talked for awhile today and I felt...what's the word...fluffy. :D He's an amazing kid, and like I said, you guys will like him. (I've nicknamed him Orange Tie because we went to a dance and he was wearing this awesome, vibrant orange tie and I LOVED IT!)**

**I feel like I bore you with details of my life. But the movie is pretty important and ya'll will be hearing tons about it. **

**A couple of review replies;**

**A bit of a nerd  
>You are AWESOME! Haha! I read your review during school, (we were on Laptops and technically, we are NOT supposed to surf the web freely.) and I laughed out loud. I got in trouble, but let me tell you, it was worth it! :D And I love your dedication to this story. It makes me grin every time I get a review from you. And my birthday, if you wanted to know, is September 10th. I was also born in 1997.<strong>

**mozzi-girl  
>You're amazing! I love hearing that because it means I'm not such a crappy writer after all. Though, there are some pretty good writers out there that I freak out if they write a review. An example of two; poemfromtheheart and Tiny Pterandon (hope I spelled that right.) All of the reviews I receive make me feel fuzzy and warm. Especially if someone tells me I was funny. That makes me laugh, because I tend to come from really funny parents, but very few of the children are actually funny. <strong>

**Ok, and this is just an idea for a Maltara Fic I want to write. I was riding in our abnormally noisy car and one of my favorite Lady Antebellum songs started playing on my iPod. (Home is Where the Heart Is) And I thought, this song would fit perfectly for CoD, if the story line was a little different. So here's what I thought;**

**Natara gets fired after the friendly fire incident. Feeling horrible about this, she decides to leave the east coast entirely because of all of it's memories. With her remaining income, she starts to travel west and hits San Francisco. Discovering that she doesn't have enough money to make it home if she had to, Natara gets a job at a local diner...to be more specific, Mal Fallon's favorite local diner. She meets him for the first time and it's instantly love. After all, her mom did tell her that Home was where the Heart was.**

**Expect epic cheesiness and song reference. That's enough about me. Here's the story. Comment, review, ask me a question (sorry there isn't a question today. I'm drawing a blank), or talk about world domination. Whatever peels your orange. I'll try to update as much as I can and I'll make sure to keep everyone in on the movie. (So far, only one of my actors (Natara) knows who the Maskmaker is. I must get the looks on their faces when they find out!)**

**Peace! Love! and Bacon-As quoted by Plastic Fork. :D**

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><p>The next night, after hauling Diggs and Sasha to the precinct, Mal lead Natara to his car. She was dressed in her beautiful evening dress that reached just below her knees. It was black with a white belt, an outfit Mal had grown fond of. Then again, he liked anything Natara wore.<p>

He felt under-dressed, though. All he wore was his very nice casual clothing. The ring was stashed away in his pocket and he kept checking on it when Natara would look away.

"Are you as excited as I am?" Mal asked and Natara shrugged.

"You seem more antsy than excited. Is there something on your mind?"

Mal had a comeback. "Did I tell you that you look stunning tonight?"

Natara smiled. "About five times now."

"Crap," Mal muttered under his breath. "No, but seriously Nat, you look beautiful."

"And you look dashing," Natara retorted and she kissed him softly. "Now let's go! I'm getting hungry."

They drove off to the restaurant and ate dinner in peace for an hour at the most. Mal did what he did best and cracked jokes, especially if Natara was drinking something. Unfortunately for him, Natara knew how to control her laughter while drinking.

"You know," he said, after yet another failed attempt at trying to make her laugh, "you're not that fun when it comes to humiliation."

"You're not that bright when it comes to humiliation," Natara said, smiling kindly. They were silent for a moment as Mal had a war in his head about when he should make the move. '_Maybe when the place is less crowded,_' he considered, but half of him wondered if that's what made proposals so special.

"I love it here," Natara said after the pause. "Brings back so many memories."

Mal smiled. "Yeah, I thought we should just head out tonight to a scene that was a little more friendly than a movie theater or a bar, for that matter."

"It was worth it," Natara said, reaching across the table to rest her hand on top of his. They looked at each other for a moment, completely silent. Mal was about to speak when Sean strolled over to the table.

"You two seem like you're having a grand time," Sean said, smiling happily. "Would you like some dessert? It's on the house."

"Free dessert?" Natara asked, obviously amused by this. Sean wasn't the one to just throw away food.

"Well of course, for the happy couple!" Sean said, and looked at Mal and gave him a look that read, 'Did you do it yet?' Mal shook his head in response.

"Natara," Mal said, "do you want some dessert?"

"I'm a little too full, but thank you," Natara said, nodding towards Sean.

"She's so polite," Sean said in a loud-whisper to Mal, which made Natara laugh quietly.

"I know, right," Mal copied Sean's tone. "That's why I'm in love with her."

Mal winked at Natara as Sean's voice lowered. "You know, you can't just sit around forever. If this girl doesn't have a ring on by midnight, I'm having you serenade her."

"You can't force me to sing," Mal muttered.

"Oh, but I can always make you pay the original price for your meal. It's not that hard to do, buddy."

"You're not the one proposing," Mal grumbled and Sean stepped back. "Anyway, I'll be back with the check. You two have fun."

He walked off and Mal sighed heavily. Natara raised an eyebrow. "What was that all about?" she asked.

"It was nothing, Nat," Mal replied, "just negotiating prices...Sean's way."

Sean didn't return with the check, however. In fact, he went back to helping other customers. This was a sign for Mal to get things over with so they could leave.

"What's taking Sean so long?" Natara asked, a little impatiently.

"Maybe he ran into some trouble...or something," Mal said quietly. He kept fiddling with the box in his pocket, trying to gather the courage. He had NEVER felt this nervous before...never.

"Are you okay, Mal?" Natara asked almost instantly. Mal stopped playing with the box.

"Of course I'm okay, Nat. I'm better than okay...after all, I'm with you."

Natara smiled at his especially cheesy remark and decided not to question him from that point on. It was maybe ten minutes until midnight when Mal decided enough was enough. The restaurant was fairly crowded, but that didn't seem to bother him as he dropped onto one knee. Natara was startled by this sudden action, but she soon covered her mouth, knowing exactly what was happening after Mal removed a small box from his coat pocket.

"Natara," he began, "I know we haven't been dating for as long as most people would approve of, but..."

"Yes!" Natara cried. "Of course!"

Mal looked confused, but smiled. "What?"

"I will marry you!"

Mal grinned as the attention of most of the customers was taken in by Natara's call. She practically jumped into his arms and he pulled her close. Their _audience _cheered for them as Mal tenderly placed a kiss on Natara's lips. Nothing could ruin this moment. Natara had just agreed to spend the rest of her life with him, and that was more than Mal could have wanted in a lifetime.


	8. Chapter 8

**Smh...that's all I have to say about this chapter and what happened yesterday. I don't have a lot of time, so I'll be quick.**

**Yesterday was fun, I'll have to admit, but I wish it could have gone differently. We went over stage combat, voice projecting, and the script. But I could seriously use some help! If you guys have any suggestion of what I can do for our next practice, that would seriously help me out a bunch. I hate feeling like an idiota around Orange Tie. :) Please? **

**Also, if you had a video request for me, could you tell me? I need to write them all down so I can get started soon. It would awesome if you guys could do that. **

**Sorry about not having a question today. I'm in a bit of a rush, and I really need help with my get-togethers for the Maskmaker movie. Thanks for reading!**

**Read and Review? (And help?) **

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><p>The wedding was planned to be simple. When Mal announced the great news at the department yesterday, they received cheers. Of course, everyone had been talking about 'Maltara', as Kai liked to call it.<p>

Officer Young approached the newly-engaged couple and tried to smile, which sent a shiver down both of Natara and Mal's spine. It looked very similar to a smile they would have received from Eric.

"Congratulations, you two," she said in her monotone expression.

"Thanks, Officer," Natara replied, still unsure of her first name. The thing was, no one really knew what Officer Young's first name was. Captain Yeong should have known, but she recalled no memory of being told her name.

"Please," Officer Young replied, "call me Skylar."

Mal raised an eyebrow. "Skylar?"

"That is my name," Officer Skylar Young said, adding a nod. "My mother is the one who named me."

"I think that's a very unique name for a girl," Natara said, though she sensed the conversation was getting terribly awkward.

"How are the dogs doing?" Mal asked quickly.

"The dogs...they're fine," Skylar responded. "All of the dogs are. Though, I think Diggs and Sasha have a special bond that would normally be found in mates."

Mal's jaw dropped slightly. "You mean, my dog and Natara's dog are..."

"Mates," Skylar finished. "It could be possible."

"Which means," Mal muttered, but Natara finished.

"We're going to be grandparents!"

"I was thinking more along the lines of, 'Screwed,'" Mal said. "I don't think of Diggs as my son. I would never produce something that..."

"Mal, would you stop it," Natara said, frowning. "Why don't we go down and see our dogs."

"Actually, both are at the vets office. I was just heading out to pick them up," Skylar explained. "Again, congrats on your marriage. I'll see you guys around." And she walked off. Mal clenched his fist.

"I do not like her," he growled.

"Because she took Sasha and Diggs to the vet?"

"No, because I am almost positive she's the one who forced them to mate. She's purposely trying to ruin my life!"

"I don't even think that would be possible, Mal. Remember when Sasha and Diggs first met? They acted as if they were more than just best friends."

"Still..."

"Still? You're holding a grudge against an officer who has been taking care of our dogs when you don't want to."

"Natara..." Mal began, but she stopped him.

"No, I don't want to hear it. Diggs doesn't deserve this kind of abuse coming from you."

"Who said I was abusing him? _He's _abusing _me_!"

From across the room, Kai sighed as he watched Mal and Natara fight. "Well, so much for the wedding."

Amy nudged him in the ribs. "Don't talk like that. It's just a premarital spat. By tomorrow morning, they'll be back to normal."

"Making out in Mal's office," Kai grumbled and Ken, who stood beside him, chuckled.

"That was actually too funny," he replied.

"I still can't believe you barged in on them, Amy," Kai said, smiling.

"Hey, the precinct is not somewhere where you can have fun with your girlfriend or boyfriend! I was not expecting either of that."

Ken laughed. "You should tell Kai that. Last week, I saw him flirting with one of the suspects."

Amy raised an eyebrow and faced Kai. "You what?"

"Ken is lying!" Kai accused instantly. "I would never ever abandon the force so I could talk to some viciously hot suspect."

"You're in love with a _fugitive_," Amy growled. "A fugitive!"

"Hey, we haven't seen each other in months," Kai defended.

The _lab geeks_ were at each others throats, calling each other names and going on and on about how Kai was a disgrace to the SFPD, something the goofy scientist had gotten a lot.

Mal and Natara were still mad with each other, but their fight had cooled down a bit.\

"Why don't you like Diggs, Mal?" Natara asked.

"I never liked dogs," Mal responded coldly. "And I never will."

"Are you speaking from a past memory?" Natara asked quietly.

"Of course not! The only dog we ever had was road-kill in under a month."

"Mal, that's horrible."

"It was, but I never grew close to the dog. How can you when you know the thing will be dead soon?"

"That's like saying how can I love you when I know one day we're both going to die."

Mal stopped. She always beat him somehow. "That's...that's not true. I love you more than anything, Nat. The dog is just a dog."

"And I'm just a human, Mal." Natara turned on her heel and walked away, leaving Mal to punch a nearby filing cabinet.

"Stupid mutt," he growled before turning to head into his office and slamming the door.

Captain Yeong heard the commotion and instantly headed towards Mal's office. "Detective Fallon!"

Mal flinched when he heard his name. "Yes Captain?" he responded as he opened the door.

"What is going on here?"

"Oh, um...nothing, Captain. Just...uh...doing paperwork?"

"Paperwork shouldn't be this noisy, Detective. Where is Special Agent Williams?"

Mal sighed. "She went somewhere. I am sorry Captain, I'll try to be more...quiet."

"Detective, is something wrong with..."

"No, nothing is wrong. I'm just overwhelmed."

"I would expect that. Try to keep quiet." And she left, but not without holding her own suspicions.

Meanwhile, Natara stood outside the SFPD, going over her jumbled thoughts. '_I just don't get why he doesn't like dogs,_' she thought. '_There has to be a past connection. Maybe after his other dog was hit, he stopped loving them._'

Natara looked back at the building, hoping to see Mal run after her and pull her into his arms. Nothing. He must have been really upset.

'_Maybe I shouldn't have yelled at him. We're both on edge after the proposal. Did I say yes too soon? This is all my fault! Everything seems to be my fault these days._'

Natara sighed and sat down on the steps leading to the doors. '_It's okay, Natara. It's only one fight. Mal still loves you, he said so himself._'

But another thought over-ruled the previous. '_What if he was lying? No, snap out of it, Natara! Mal would never lie to hurt you. He said he loved you and he meant it._'

A final thought abolished the others, leaving her feeling more depressed than ever. '_Maybe I'm just not ready for commitment._'


	9. Chapter 9

**Hey everyone. Two updates in one day? I'm awesome. :D**

**Well, I'm actually at my grandmas right now, (successful wifi hacking skillz) and every time an adult walks by, I have to close out of the Internet Browser. So I've been working on this story for an hour now. I actually am having a lot of fun with Mal and Natara. And this story is getting closer to ending, but not too close. I think ya'll will like the next chapter a lot. I'm trying to add humor. The next chapter will be out tomorrow when I come home from school. I won't spoil any of it, because I actually really like that chapter. It's awesome, in my opinion. **

**I have to reply to some reviews though. :)**

**-A bit of a nerd  
>Oh snap! Haha! And yes, yes I am. It's a great name. (I don't know any football terms. I rarely watch it. The only times I do is when Utah Utes are fighting against BYU. Their games are freakin intense. ((Yes, I live in Utah, you know, the state with weather mood-swings.)) )<strong>

**-jamz13  
><strong>**I'm sorry about the bad day. I hate those kind of days. I can totally empathize with you. And sweetness about my stories. I love hearing people say that. 'I'm not a faliure!' -That's exactly what I said when I saw my very first review! Haha, I am such a nerd. :D-**

**-But I Have Promises To Keep  
><strong>**SUCCESS! :D I have to admit, that's one of my more, 'clever' lines. ;) Once more, I try to be funny and successes always make me smile.**

**And, I know this sounds silly, but I am dedicating this section to my puppy-dog, Gus. If you look on my bio, my picture is him. Gus, though he may be completely brainless at times and doesn't know the difference between sit/lay/or jump, he's the sweetest mutt. He is supposed to be really vicious, but he wouldn't hurt a fly. In fact, he's friends with the birds now. (We got him to stop slaying random birds somehow.) He loves loves loves people and he loved it when my friends came over yesterday. He especially liked Orange Tie. ;) All he wants to do is be your buddy.**

**A short little reason why this chapter is exactly dedicated to him; A year ago, I was really depressed and mad at my older brother and my younger brothers. I was ready to run off and leave all my problems behind. In other words, I was a wimp. I got so fed up, that I actually did run off, ready to get my parents from a nearby house. (They were visiting some friends) Well, something stopped me and I decided to head back home and sit out in the back. I started crying because, once more, I was fed up. Gus took notice of this, (he hates it when people are sad) and walked over to me and hopped on the bench I was sitting on. He kind of growled at me and licked my face. Normally, I would scold him for getting crap germs all over my cheek, but I was comforted by him. I talked to him all about how I felt and I told him my deepest secrets. **

**So in this chapter, you'll see a bit of that between Natara and Sasha.**

**Read and review? -Still drawing a blank on questions, sorry.-**

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><p>Natara wasn't one who liked commitment, especially in her line of work. People were always dying and she never knew if she would be next.<p>

Later that night, she sat in her hotel room, snuggled against Sasha, who seemed to like Natara's warmth. Ever since their fight, Natara hadn't talked to Mal. It was literally driving her CRAZY! She had ranted to Sasha for the past hour, trying to get her feelings straight on whether she should change her mind about the wedding. Even though Sasha wasn't actually listen, Natara thought she was well into the conversation.

"I really like him," she said, stroking the side of Sasha's face. "I really, really do. He makes me smile when no one else can. I think I agreed to fast though. What do I do, Sasha?"

The dog just yawned and snuggled up closer to Natara. She sighed heavily and stopped talking. When her phone rang, Natara made a quick grab for it, upsetting Sasha. She apologized quickly and opened the phone after reading the Caller ID.

"Mal?" she asked.

"Natara," he replied, his voice filled with sorrow. "I am sorry for snapping at you in the precinct today. I have no clue what came over me."

"No, Mal," Natara said, "I'm sorry. Obviously, you have your own opinion and I didn't respect it. I am so, so sorry."

Mal was silent and Natara could hear the faintest _bing _in the background. "Natara, are you alright?"

She was a little surprised by this question. "Actually Mal, we really need to talk."

"That doesn't sound good."

"I know it doesn't. How fast do you think you can get here?"

"Would fifteen seconds be okay?" he asked and Natara couldn't help but smile.

"You're here?"

"I had to check on you."

Mal knocked on the door and Natara retrieved it, closing her phone. He stood in his rain-soaked jacket and next to him, in an SFPD bullet-proof vest, was Diggs. Natara smiled and instantly threw her arms around Mal's neck, almost close to tears.

"I am sorry," she said into his jacket and Mal grinned as he pulled her closer.

"You shouldn't be. I was the one who was being a jerk. Natara, I love you so much, and just that little fight hurt me."

"It hurt me too," Natara replied softly.

After their embrace, Natara led Mal to the couch. They sat together, Natara leaning against Mal as he placed his arm around her shoulders. They stayed like that for awhile, both trying to imagine what they should do; what they should say. Natara was the first to speak up.

"I don't think I'm ready to get married Mal," she said, and knew it was the worst news he had ever gotten. He chose not to show it on his face though.

"Really?" he asked.

Natara didn't reply. She was already close to tears. Instead, she watched as Diggs played around with Sasha. In a way, she could definitely see a bit of Mal in Diggs. She didn't find herself in Sasha, though. Diggs protected Sasha like Mal did to her. Diggs gave Sasha comforting kisses, something Mal loved to do to Natara. It was crazy that she was relating Mal to a dog.

"Nat, I...I don't know what to say. Should we cancel the wedding?" Mal asked.

"I don't know." Natara replied softly. "I am just...just worried about the risks."

"I understand," Mal said, looking ahead. "I am worried about the risks too. But if I spend too much time worrying about if I'll live through the night, I won't do the things I love doing. I won't be focused on what I want to achieve, or the girl I want to marry."

"I see what you're saying," Natara responded, "but I am not as strong as you, Mal. It's hard for me to go a day without thinking that it might be my last."

"Natara, you are stronger than most women. You're in the FBI, something men are well known for, not women. You tackle down bad guys and interrogate suspects like none other. You've dealt with several deaths. And most importantly, you're dating me! So saying you're not tough is an insult."

"Sure, I may be tough on the outside, but on the inside, almost every day I almost get to the point when I have a mental break-down. It's really scary, Mal. It's something I'm not used to."

"You've got to remember though, Nat. I will always be here for you, no matter what! I am here to protect you, to keep you safe and sound. I will never let anything hurt you."

"You say that, but do you really mean it?"

"Are you questioning Mal Fallon?"

Natara smiled. "I guess not. So what do we do?"

"I want to marry you, Natara, I really do. But you have a say in this as well. I want to do whatever you want to do."

Natara smiled and snuggled closer to Mal. "Give me a day to think about it, okay?"

"Whatever makes you happy."


	10. Chapter 10

**Hey ya'll! I just want to begin by thanking each and every one of you for a review. Especially you, A bit of a nerd. You make me laugh every time. Just don't come stalking me, a'ight? My uncle is a cop, and though he may be a complete goofball...I still sort of rely on him for protection. Though, I think you have no intent of harming me. Also, I have no clue what a pregnancy test even sounds like...Haha! But no, it was the sound of an elevator.**

**So, the reason I am so happy right now is because I had a really, and I mean REALLY crappy day. Despite constant embarrassment from the worst movie practice ever, I was really frustrated and ready to tackle my prey. Why? Well, in my school, everyone is supposedly nice. After all, it is a private school. (I hate saying that.) I hate, hate, hate being there sometimes. Like today, for example.**

**I'm not entitled to my own opinion. I cannot speak without having the words ripped out of my mouth and crushed to the ground. I cannot express my feelings without getting insulted by one of my friends. Well, two of my friends, actually. I am not even allowed to talk about Cause of Death because some think it's too gory and violent. (And they're also acting in the movie, which ticks me off. Get used to the freakin blood, you're teenagers for cryin' out loud!) I know I have no right to be talking about my class mates like this, but I really need to vent right now. So if you're not in for a pretty boring vent, skip to the story. I still love you guys. :)**

**So, anyway, today I was feeling especially peeved today. Now, me, I am used to not being able to speak my mind. But I was so tired of not being able to laugh at jokes my friend had told me the night before. My school is filled with people who get mad at dirty jokes, get upset when you talk about violence, get angry when you talk about your _feelings _(when they talk freely about theirs) and so and so forth. I used to really like school, but now, I am anticipating the day when I leave. I know it wasn't like that awhile ago, but it's changed a lot. **

**All the boys who were my friends previous are still cool with me. (I even decided to change Plastic Fork to just Plastic Killer because he attempted to kill me with a spoon today. I don't even want to know what he has in store with the plastic knives and cups. ;) No, but seriously, I love that kid! He was the only one who comforted me while I was feeling down.)**

**Now, I know this might be offensive to some, and I'm NOT trying to cause offense. This was one of the problems that caused my miserable day. My friend was talking about Unitards. It's a movie about Mentally Challenged Kids trying to fit in in life. Uni-Standing for Unity and Tards-standing for the misinterpreted term, 'Retard' which I find offensive at points. She told me I _had _to watch it and when I disagreed and gave my opinion, you know what she did, 'You're an idiot sometimes, Shelby.' Some of you know I have severe depression issues and mild thoughts of suicide. Now, I promise you, I WILL NEVER END MY LIFE. I have goals to live for. But when you're constantly beaten to the ground whenever you speak, it's hard to pick yourself up Back to the story. I walked away from her and my other friends were pissed. Rumors spread in under an hour and no one wanted to talk to me. Not unless, they asked opinion questions. I would reply with, 'Well, according to every student in this class, my opinion doesn't matter to anyone!' And trust me, it's going to be horrible tomorrow. **

**Now here's the part where my amazing, day-making, awesome, wonderful, so many words that can't describe readers and reviewers come in. I really need help solving this problem. I need to know whether it's my fault or if I am just over-reacting. I believe it's both and that's why I'm feeling a little down today. I am so tired of this depression and going to school and having it rebuilt. Do ya'll think you could help a writer out?**

**And on a happier note, I started Home is Where the Heart Is. Still haven't with Officer Down, First Down, but I'll get there.**

**And I can guarantee a couple of different responses to this. Especially when I say I had to review two very awkward subjects. (Pregnancy Timeline and Dog Pregnancy Timeline. Let's just hope my mom doesn't look at my history...:) )**

**Thank you! Read, review, advice? You're all amazing!**

**-Katlana**

* * *

><p>When morning came, Mal opened his eyes and found himself in Natara's room. Last night was all a blur. All he remembered was...<p>

"Aw crap," Mal muttered and stood up. Somehow he had ended up in his briefs. Natara was sleeping peacefully. Why did she have to bring out the alcohol? Reacting quickly, he threw on his clothes and looked around in disgust. Everything was jumbled up. Diggs and Sasha were lying close together, watching Mal's little episode.

"What have I done," Mal hissed and Diggs wagged his tail, a vicious smirk upon his face that clearly read, 'You messed up big time.'

"Please tell me that Natara and I didn't do anything last night."

Diggs kept his smirk and Mal cursed under his breath. "You're annoying, you know," he growled before walking over to Natara. He gently shook her awake and she glared at him.

"What?" she asked.

"Natara, something happened last night," Mal informed quickly. "Something that we'll most likely pay for in nine months."

It took a split second for Natara to catch on and she sat up straight. "Wh-what?"

"I know this all sounds bad right now," Mal said quietly.

"Bad? Bad? This is worse than bad!" Natara went into a stage that Mal had rarely seen; panic. "This isn't supposed to happen. It was never supposed to be like this! I am not supposed to get pregnant!"

"Let's try to think this through," Mal said, almost fearing her reply.

"I already thought it through, Mal!"

"Well I don't have a brain like yours, so at least let me think this through!"

"I can't be a mother...not yet, at least."

"We need some professional help," Mal concluded and Natara looked at him, confused.

"What professional help? The only help I can think of is for teen pregnancies. I'm in my thirties!"

"Well, I happen to know a man who deals with this kind of stuff..." Natara examined his expression and frowned.

"I am NOT going to the doctors!"

"Come on, Nat. It's the only way. Besides, we don't even have to go if the test isn't positive. So, don't freak out about this just yet."

"I can't take care of a baby," Natara muttered, covering her face. "I can't Mal."

"Well, I know a thing or two about babies and so do you. After all, you do have a sister, right?"

Natara shook her head. "I barely helped out with her."

Mal sighed heavily and sat next to Natara. "Hey, we'll be alright. I promise you."

Natara looked into Mal's eyes for a long minute. She still couldn't believe all of this was happening. But then again, she probably might not even be pregnant. She sighed and rested her head on Mal's shoulder. "I love you so much, Mal. I just don't think I'm ready for this."

"Neither do I," Mal replied, "but we can work through this, together."

Later that morning, Mal kept Natara in his sights at all times while at the precinct. He held her hand protectively as they walked out for lunch. Kai took notice of this.

"Wow, yesterday they were nearly at each others throats, and now, Mal's acting like she's the only thing that matters. I'm guessing he got her pregnant."

Amy shook her head. "Seriously, Kai, why are you always saying stuff like that. Oh, can you pass me those files on the Grande Case?"

Kai obeyed, giving her the manila folder. She went over the files in silence before Kai spoke up again. "I think he did though. He has never been this protective."

"Maybe he doesn't want to lose Natara to another fight," Amy muttered as she typed information onto her computer.

"Or maybe he got her pregnant."

"Whatever, Kai. Why don't you go ask them for yourself, since you act like you're so sure."

"Are you kidding? It's like me going up to Special Agent Hottie and saying she's fat."

"Isn't that the same thing?" Amy was getting more annoyed.

"Well, I'll get beat up either way. But seriously, wouldn't it be so rad if Mal and Natara had a kid?"

Amy shrugged. "I guess they would make good parents. Mal's definitely got the father traits and I know Natara has the potential to be a mother."

"It would be just like my fan-fic!" Kai said, grinning just as Ken strolled in.

"Yo, Lab Geeks. I need that Grande File ASAP," he said.

"You know, you could always call us by our first names," Amy muttered.

"I could, but I like the sound of Lab Geeks. So where is it?"

"I'm analyzing it," Amy said, but she handed the file to Ken. "What's so important about it?"

"Natara thinks there's something wrong with it. She had, like, a sudden vision or something." He looked through the file casually before turning back to Kai and Amy. "Have you two noticed something strange with Mal and Natara?"

"Besides the fact that Natara is carrying a baby," Kai said and Ken smirked.

"You're kidding!" he exclaimed.

"We're not sure," Amy added. "It's one of Kai's suspicions."

"But Natara might just be pregnant?"

"This is how rumors get started," Amy growled as she returned to her computer.

At that moment, Skylar walked down the steps. Kai smiled slightly, being one of the few that actually liked her.

"Hey Sky," he greeted and Skylar nodded.

"Kai. Amy, can you run a name through the database for me?"

"Sure thing, Officer Young. What is it?"

"Anita Jacobs. Apparently, she's suspected to be a part of the...why does everyone look so _on-edge_ today? Mal hardly leaves Natara's side and you guys are sharing weird glances."

"I'm not sure we can explain without getting killed by Mal or Natara," Ken said. "But we think..."

"That's enough!" Amy cried, standing up. This action almost scared the small group. They had never seen the normally shy, yet quirky technician act like this. "I don't want any rumors spread about Mal and Natara. Obviously, they're both stressed out by the wedding and they don't need anything else to distract them. Do I make myself sound clear?"

The lab was silent for a moment. Then Kai responded with,

"Wow, Amy. You're hot when you take control."


	11. Chapter 11

**It's a little short and a bit late, but I need to tell ya'll something, after I'm done saying I LOVE ALL OF YOU! All of your reviews just concerning my opinion and such made me grin. I'm going to reply to only two reviews today, but I want everyone to know that if you sent a review, I read it and smiled because each and every one of you guys are amazing. You make a crazy chick like me smile on my worst days.**

**-mozzi-girl  
>I love writing for Kai. :D He's so bubbly. Especially in the latest now airing when he was playing that one game and going on and on about it. It made me laugh because it sounded like me whenever I play Call of Duty: Black Ops. (I use to play online, but our X-Box doesn't have that feature anymore.) I can relate to Kai in so many ways it isn't funny...okay, well maybe it is.<strong>

**Thanks for the comforting response. :D And you took the words right out of my mouth. Everyone here is like my third family. (I already promised the second position to my bestie, sorry guys!) You're awesome! :D**

**-A bit of a nerd  
>I have said it once and I will say it again...I FREAKIN LOVE YOU! :D Not in the creepy way...:D And I'm sure you'll like this chapter, since you made several predictions about it. (Haha! I just gave the whole chapter away. :) ) And I giggled when you used Plastic Killer and Orange Tie. :D Yeah, they're amazing, though Plastic Killer has been the one who has had my back the whole time. Orange Tie...we're off and on, but his brother, (his nickname is Spiky Hair, because he has some pretty sexy hair. :D ) and I are pretty tight. I think he might have a little crush on me or something. But then again, who DOESN'T have a crush on me! (Haha, how I wish that were really true...:D) And as for Officer Down, First Down, that's exactly what I'm aiming for. But then I started another story...haha, kill me, but Officer Down, First Down may not be out for awhile. Thanks for the reply!<strong>

**Ok, and I have good news and bad news.**

**Let's break the ice with the bad; I am getting sick. Not just your normal kind of sick, just weirded out sick. I've been really tired lately, nauseated, light-headed...you know, all that good stuff. And to make things better, I think I may be lactose intolerant. It's not that big of a deal, I mean, my friend is Lactose and we're closer than ever. So I have a barrier. I don't know what's happening with me though, and I hope I can get some medical help from my mom, or maybe some advice from all of ya'll. :) You see, today, I came home and had my normal afternoon snack which consisted of some chips, and some amazing dip. Well, I must have eaten the chip to fast because I got one stuck in my throat. I somehow managed to get it out, but now my throat kills. I think I may have cut it in the process. So if you have any methods of treating this or have even had experience, I would love some advice. :D (Seems like all I've been asking for is advice.) -Also starting to have very mild breathing issues. I can breathe through my nose fine, but when I try to breathe through my mouth, I start coughing...-**

**As for the good news, with the help of your reviews, some comforting words from my friend, a bag of candy, laughing hysterically, and video chatting with complete strangers, I have to say yesterday's events are almost a thing of the past. My friend who I had fought with and I are trying to patch things up, though I don't know how to tell her that I want my own opinion on things. Think you can help? (Yay! More advice! Haha! I promise, I'll think of a question soon.) Here's our conversations. (Underline being me and italicized being her.) _Why are you so upset?_ I can't say or people will only get mad at me. Besides, it's only personal matters. _No they won't! And I mainly just want to know if I can do anything to help! _I don't know, I'm just annoyed by the little things. I need to learn to get over them. _So is there anything I can do to help? _How do I tell her the following: I hate it when I am unable to provide my own opinion. I hate it when things are repeated to me several times. I hate how I can't share my feelings on a subject. I hate it when I'm trying to work and the person next to me won't be quiet (referring to her). I hate it when my stories are made fun of. I hate it how I can't talk freely, yet everyone else can. I hate how every girl is a wimp (trying my best to be polite here, people). I just hate a bunch of things.**

**-Remember, I want to be as polite as possible without hurting anyone's feelings.-**

**Well, I'm starting to yawn. OH! And I may be taking a break from writing for a couple of days. I need to take some time to focus on academics, friends, family, and most definitely how to change a few things in my messed up school life. Thank you for reading.**

**Read and Review? I would love it!**

**-Katlana**

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><p>For the next few weeks, it was awkward in the station. It wasn't until Natara took the actual test when things eased up.<p>

She came out of the precinct bathroom, shaking her head. "It's positive," she told Mal and was welcomed into his arms.

"Come on, Nat," Mal said, smiling, "We talked about this and, well, I'm actually excited."

"I'm not. We're not even married yet, Mal." Natara groaned.

"Yes, but we will be by this Saturday. The baby won't be here for another eight and a half months. We have all that time to prepare."

"I'm not ready..."

Mal kept her in a hug until Kai and Amy walked up the stairs, leading to the bull-pen.

"Oh, hey Natara, Mal," Kai greeted. "What a lovely day, isn't it."

"Lovely," Mal muttered. "What are you guys up to?"

"Um..." Amy replied, rubbing the back of her neck. "I'm not entirely sure. Kai just dragged me up here."

"I wanted to say hi to my favorite couple in the entire precinct."

"I feel the love," Mal muttered. "But seriously, can Nat and I have a moment alone. We need to discuss..."

"Ah, see! I knew she was pregnant!" Kai called and the whole precinct went quiet. All eyes fell on Natara or Kai. Natara blushed heavily and tried to hide her face, but that made it more obvious that for once, Kai wasn't lying.

"Kai!" Amy growled.

"Oh...was it supposed to be a secret?" Kai asked and Mal glared at him.

"You know what, Kai? You're an idiot!" Mal hissed and took Natara into his office. Amy sent a glare towards Kai, something he seemed to be getting from a lot of the officers.

"You're such a jerk, Kai," Amy said, shaking her head and walking away.

"Ames! Come on! I didn't know it was supposed to be a secret! Amy?" he faced the other officers. "Come on, guys. You believe me."

"Actually," Officer Young replied, "I do, but it was still wrong for you to call it out. Obviously they're more depressed than anything right now. What they need is space, and a lot of it."

"Come on, Skylar," Kai said, almost to the point of whining, "I didn't know!"

"Be quiet, Kai. Go back to the lab, where it's safer for you right now." She walked past him and Kai looked down, ashamed of his action. Like a sad puppy, he stumbled back into the crime lab.

Meanwhile, Mal and Natara sat in Mal's office, blocked by the door that separated them from the bull-pen. Natara stared ahead at the wall. A picture of her and Mal resided there. It was their first date; a football game. Natara didn't like football all that much, but every time when she saw the picture, she gained a smile and a new jump of confidence. She sat next to Mal in a gold and maroon jersey, black paint under her eyes. Mal had the same attire on. They looked like any other dating couple; happy, calm, so in-love. She couldn't tear herself away from Mal's eyes. They were sincere, a trait that she liked. They were piercing ocean-blue, one of her favorite colors. She then imagined this baby she was carrying with Mal's wonderful eyes. Whether it was a boy or girl, his eyes seemed to fit perfectly.

She stopped tearing up and took a seat next to Mal. He held her hand tightly and she sighed. "Well, you know what they say," she said with a small mutter, "blame it on the alcohol that your girlfriend drugs you up on."

Mal chuckled softly. "You're amazing Nat. Are you sure you're alright with this?"

"I am still not. But knowing that our son or daughter will most likely have some of your traits...well, it makes me smile. And also knowing that they'll have a great daddy to have and hold forever."

Mal smiled and kissed the side of Natara's head. "And for me, knowing that they'll have a beautiful mother to look up to and be inspired by...Well, that makes me the happiest man on Earth."

Natara smiled. "Can we come up with names? I know it's still really early, but I want to have a name in mind."

Mal laughed and nodded. "Alright, alright. I'll go on that baby-name website. But the real question is, should we make bets on if it's a boy or girl. Loser has to..."

"Well, since I'm most likely due before winter, let's say the loser will have to jump into the community pool."

"Oh," Mal said, with a wide grin, "you are so on!"


	12. Chapter 12

**I've been to only one wedding. Actually, it was only the reception. So I skipped the entire vows part and got on with the story.**

**REVIEW REPLIES:  
><strong>

**-A bit of a nerd  
><strong>**Once again, awesome to hear from you. Haha! The idea isn't completely mine. And I give credit to the actual writer, who was on the Danny Phantom boards...I don't remember what the story was called, but it made me laugh and jumping into the pool to see if the baby was a boy or girl just made me laugh. I already know who I'm going to throw in the pool, and that, my friend, will be a secret. Unless, however, you predict it. :)**

**-But I Have Promises To Keep  
>That actually sounds really good right now. :D Too bad I don't have herbal tea...(The only tea I'm allowed to drink...smh) I took some nasty medicine instead. Though next time I have a sore throat, I'll remember that! It's still present, but it's only like, a small tickle, and I might just be getting sick. The feeling of the chip being in my throat is no longer there. So, again, it must just be the getting sick feeling.<strong>

**-mozzi-girl  
><strong>**Haha! Thank you! As stated, Kai is a really fun person to write for! :D And as for the doctor issue, you might be right. I'll wait for a couple more days. If my throat is still scratchy, then I'll make sure to have my mother make an appointment. Thank you for the friend advice too. :) I'll try it out. :D**

**Now that that's over, hey everyone! :D So, I'm just going to speed through Natara's pregnancy and get into the fun, action-y stuff. I have the ending planned out and besides, I want to start some of my short stories. And I started writing another song-fic...two actually. :) I might save one for near Father's Day or just put it out with a special dedication. :D**

**Also, I thought of a question. :D It's not CoD related, (sorry.) but I thought it was pretty good, considering I've been off all day from taking some medicine. (I hate medicine, mostly because it increases what I want to get rid of.) So, here's the question;**

**What are the little things that you love doing?**

**As for my answer, I love waking up in the morning, looking at myself in the mirror, getting ready, and then taking a look after I'm finished. (I really like Before and After situations.) I also love cleaning my room. I make up either, songs, poetry, or stories while I do it.**

**Thanks for the reviews, your kind words of encouragement and good-will, and just being totally awesome. (If you can tell me what play, 'Totally Awesome' is from, I'll love you forever. **

**And I think I promised someone a dedication. I'll see if I can get that to you...whoever I promised...XD I am so bad at remembering.**

**Read and Review? Thank you!**

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><p>Their wedding was small, short, and simple, Mal's favorite words to describe events. However, he wished it could have been a little longer. He loved the fact that he could now call Natara Mrs. Fallon. He also wished the dogs weren't invited, but he had to make Natara happy on her special day, right?<p>

Out of the entire wedding, Mal had to favor the dancing near the end. Not only did he dance with Natara for the first time as her spouse, but he also saw the look of joy when Raj was able to attend. He loved seeing them dancing together, though Mal wished his mother were still alive to dance with. He couldn't help but glance at the sky, religious beliefs taking over. When Anita Mansingh told him that since his mother wasn't present, and he was their son-in-law, she would love to dance with him. After all, who didn't like Mal?

When they returned home that night, Mal relaxed on the couch, acting as if nothing had happened. They decided to delay the honeymoon because of the baby, and lack of money, (Natara had refused to take any money from her parents). Sasha came over and sat by Mal's feet, which he didn't like, but it was nicer than Diggs attacking his feet.

Natara came and sat next to him, now in her PJ's. She snuggled up against him, and of course, the first thing she talked about was the baby. He could tell she wasn't too excited to be a mother just yet, but he knew she was willing to take the risk.

"So I was thinking of baby names at the wedding," she said quietly. "And since I want it to be a girl and you want it to be a boy, I thought of a girl name that you might like."

Mal smiled. "Let me hear it."

"Well, I actually have three. There's Natasha, Marie, or Kara."

"I have to admit," Mal said, "those are _cute _names. Wanna hear the boy names I picked out?"

"Of course I do."

"Well, there's always the option of Mal Jr. or Junior."

"I'm sorry, Mal, but that's never happening."

Mal frowned playfully. "Aw come on, Nat! If _he's _as good-looking as me, he has to have a good name."

"There can only be one Mal in my life," Natara replied.

"What about Daniel."

"That one's nice. It's common, but nice."

"Then I also thought of Bob."

Natara giggled and looked up at Mal. "Junior...Bob? Do you have any originality?"

"Ken Jr.?"

"How would you like it if I said Kai Jr.?"

Mal shook his head. "Okay, the Junior's are out. How about..."

Someone knocked on the door and Mal smiled. "We'll talk about it later. Chinese is here!"

When the morning sickness started, Mal knew the best thing to do was just get Natara what ever she wanted and sleep in a separate bed to avoid being vomited on. It went well, until Diggs forced Mal off the couch and he was stuck on the most uncomfortable arm-chair in existence. When Natara discovered him curled up in a ball on the chair and Diggs lounging on the couch, she got concerned.

"You've got to take control," she told him. "Diggs is just a dog."

"That likes to rip off arms," Mal retorted as he got ready for the days work. Natara had decided to tag along, since she wasn't exactly immobile yet.

"Well, we did send him to that dog training camp," Natara muttered.

"And he still hates me. Maybe he thinks I'm the one that ran him over."

"Or maybe he didn't want to be rescued."

Mal shrugged. "Whatever. I still think he hates my guts."

Natara smiled. "You think that about everyone."

"Well, about 83% of the time, it's true."

"I really hope our baby doesn't take after you, humor wise. I cannot handle another smart aleck," Natara responded playfully.


	13. Chapter 13

**Ok, so I had, like, this really long reply typed out and everything, and somehow, I was logged out of fan-fiction. So, I'm sorry there won't be any review replies, though I read every single one. (And props to But I Have Promises To Keep for getting the RIGHT play. :D ((I seriously thought I was the only Starkid fan on the CoD boards. :D)) )**

**So here's today's excerpt. I am planning on ending Natara's pregnancy in the next chapter because I really need to finish this story. :D Thank you all and read and review? :D**

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><p>When Natara started showing and the morning sickness got worse, Captain Yeong gave her two options; Desk-Duty or No work at all. Natara being Natara, she chose Desk-Duty. At least she had Amy to talk to.<p>

"So, what are the names?" Amy asked, smiling.

"Mal still hasn't come up with his, besides Daniel, but other than that, my names are Natasha, Marie and Kara," Natara replied.

"Those are cute! I really like Natasha though, because it sounds like Natara."

Natara smiled and looked down at her small baby-bump. "Well," she said, "I never thought of it that way."

Amy sighed. "Hey, can I ask you something...you know, personal?"

"Sure thing," Natara replied, looking up at the sudden change of conversation.

"Well, it's about Kai," Amy continued. "He...he started dating Skylar."

"That's great! Kai's happy, right?"

"Of course he is. She is everything he wants. She has the looks, she plays video games...she even has creepy obsessions."

"What are you implying?"

"She's got everything that...That I don't."

Natara raised an eyebrow. "You're...You're falling for Kai?"

"Not so loud," Amy gasped, panicked.

"I think it's great that you're actually crushing on someone that doesn't work across the country," Natara replied, quietly.

"But he likes Skylar, and I am happy for them, because Skylar is very unlikely for a boyfriend...no offense."

Natara smiled. "You know, just wait for a few weeks. If they're still madly in love, then keep hoping that you can be happy too. You know, he may not be your knight in shining armor."

"But we work so closely and we're always together...this is turning out just like the Eric incident. I'm afraid it'll happen again."

"You have an incredible amount of courage, Amy. I'm sure you'll end up happy either way. You don't need to remember Eric every time you date someone. I know it's hard, but you've got to remember, you're stronger than you think."

"Thanks Natara. Hey, you're looking pretty pale again. Do you need a bucket?"

Natara hadn't noticed she was feeling sick again, but once Amy noted that, she nodded quickly. Reacting quickly, Amy ripped a trash can away from one of the officer's desks, she had hoped just a little it was Officer Young's, and shoved it towards Natara, who used it gratefully. Officers all over gave them weird looks as Natara heaved into the bucket and Amy stood by, patting her back and talking quietly.

"I hate..." Natara coughed, "being pregnant."

"Hey, but think of this," Amy replied, "you'll have your own son or daughter in just seven months! By the way, are you getting an ultrasound, soon?"

"A couple more weeks. However, we don't want to know about the gender just yet."

"Why not? That's the most exciting part, so I've heard."

"Mal and I made a bet."

Amy raised an eyebrow. "Oh...really?"

"Yes, and I am hoping with all my heart that this baby is a girl."

Later that evening, Mal sat in front of the TV, working with a bunch of wood pieces. When Natara had woken up from a nap and had seen what her husband was doing, she was a bit baffled. She took a seat on the comfortable couch, Sasha instantly joining her and Diggs sitting by her feet loyally, and looked down at Mal.

"What are you doing?" she asked.

"Well," Mal began, "since we won't have our own place for awhile and the baby needs somewhere to sleep until we get it it's own room, I'm making a crib."

Natara smiled. "Really now. I didn't know Mal Fallon had a mechanical side hidden away."

"Oh, trust me, I am far from mechanical. But this crib said easy assembly. And here I am; Assembling the Lying Crib."

"Lying?"

"This thing is far from easy! It's like the directions are in a foreign language." Natara glanced over his shoulder and giggled. He gave her an annoyed glare.

"What?" he asked.

"Mal, honey, it might help to have the directions right-side-up."

Mal looked at the instructions, thinking Natara was just being sarcastic, but there they were, upside-down. Mal cursed under his breath as he fixed them and he heard Natara smile and thought he saw Diggs smile as well. But this smile was more of a smirk that read, _You're an idiot, Mal._


	14. Chapter 14

**This could either be the moment you were dreading, or anxious for. Ok, before I go into my usual rant, let me just say...I learn from Fan-Fics. I have never been in a situation where I gave birth. (I'm only 14, so, yeah...) However, I have visited my aunt and her baby when he was less than 24 hours old. I refused to hold him though because I knew I would drop him. (I'm surprised I haven't dropped my laptop yet.) I am such a klutz. Anyway, (that cousin hates me, by the way, and he's only one.) **

**REVIEW REPLIES:**

**-But I Have Promises To Keep  
>'Cause Baby you're Not alone! Cause you're here with me! And nothing's ever gonna take us down...' :D I love that musical. And Eep Op Ork Ah Ah! :D (Is it wrong to say I feel a bit like Kai? Haha!) Starship Rangers unite! Thanks for the review!<strong>

**-A bit of a nerd  
>It took me awhile before I got the Amen thing. Well, I'm not against the KenAmy pair, but Ken is nearing his forties and Amy is in her twenties. I think it's a bit weird, but not unheard of. I just tend to lean towards the Kai/Amy pairing, though I don't obsess. Though, I do think Amy might have a little crush on Ken. :) Which, in my opinion, is cute. Thanks for the comment, and thanks for the review! You're amazing!**

**-mozzi-girl  
><strong>**Have I ever told you how much your reviews make me smile? :D I love the fact that you point out the things that I don't get and tell me that I'm actually doing some things right. And I actually really like Diggs's Sarcasm. It kind of adds a little bit of Mal to the dog, and Mal is a beast. :D And crap...I actually don't know where I was going with the Skylar/Kai pairing. I guess it was just a conversation booster. But if you want to see what happens, I can probably try to fit it in somehow. :) After this chapter, I think I'll have close to three more. Or two. I'm still unsure. Thanks for the review!**

**-cpdx  
>Hey, thanks for stopping by. And I like your comment in a strange way. I do specialize in short stories, and this <em>was <em>supposed to be one of those stories. But if you have any advice for me, would you care to share? I wouldn't mind hearing! :D Thanks for the review and comment.**

**Ok, so turns out, I might actually be coming down with something, or might have to go to the doctors because of my throat. I'm thinking, 'Tonsillectomy.' Hey, but there's always a good side to that. I've heard a singing voice could become better, but then again, I rely on Hey Arnold for those kind of answers. So, I've decided that if my throat doesn't get better by Monday, I would ask my mom to schedule an appointment. Until then, I will be on medicine. Oh joy...Which means I'll technically be wacky every day until then. (Yes...medicine is NOT nice to me. It might have something to do with the fact that I take it in the morning and I never eat in the morning...((though I did eat today and I discovered I dislike eating at 6:50 in the morning.)) So yeah, I'll tell you guys if I'll have to go to the doctors because that will most-likely disrupt my stories.**

**As for little extras, first of all, this is close to one of my least favorite chapters because I loathe the ending. I really do. I feel like I rush everything. Next; I want to dedicate this chapter. Not to my dog...or my dad...or even the hobo that lives next to our school (not lying about that one.) I'm dedicating this to one of my old neighbors. They just had their baby a few days ago, but he's having complications and won't be able to return home with them today. I know she will never see this, but still, thought it would be nice to say this. She's also an author too, which makes me smile, because she helped me out a bit while she was my neighbor. I LOVED her. So anyway, this goes out to Karen (she always had us call her by her first name.) and their newest member to the family, William. :D**

**As for tomorrow...I'm not sure there will be a post. And maybe not on Sunday either. I need to be in a quiet room to log into my grandma's internet and since (I'm guessing) Sunday is SuperBowl, the men will be downstairs, the women will be upstairs and the little annoying cousins will be everywhere. Ugh...is it wrong to say I despise little kids? I mean, I favor a few of the cousins, and I like other little kids that I just so happen not to be related to. **

**Anyway, enough of my ranting! Enjoy the story! Read and review? Thank you!**

* * *

><p>The baby was fine, and that's all Mal understood. The ultrasound was a little too confusing for him to grasp, but Natara talked him through it during the drive home.<p>

The months came and went, and Mal was more than happy when the morning sickness ended. He didn't have to wrestle Diggs for his rightful place on the couch. However, he had to deal with Sasha sitting at the end of the bed, snoring louder than Diggs, and Diggs was a loud snorer. Natara didn't seem affected by this because she said Mal actually snored, and he got slightly offended. For the first few nights back with Natara, he couldn't sleep. He couldn't focus at work, which annoyed Captain Yeong. And as Natara got more immobile, Mal was running to and from work to help her out. Honestly, he couldn't wait for all of this to be over. He could almost say he was ready to be a dad, and was actually willing to jump in the pool.

But he regretted all of that when Natara hit nine months and her water broke. He endured some Hell here and there, especially during delivery, but it was worth it. He held her hand, cheering her on as she shouted curses at him. He tried not to laugh when she gave an all too funny threat, because she would only make sure she caused him some pain as well.

Okay, he wouldn't admit any of it, but just the sight was making him woozy. He blinked several times, trying to calm himself, but the feeling of nauseousness was still present. When the doctor noticed this, he asked if Mal wanted to step out and wait for a minute.

"No," Mal replied, "I can handle this. I'm Head Detective of the SFPD, for cryin' out loud." That, and he was practically glued to Natara. She refused to let him out of her sight; probably so she could throw more curses at him.

Six hours of labor and a short delivery later, Daniel Fallon was born. Natara had stopped shouting and actually started to cry. Mal wrapped an arm around her shoulders and kissed the side of her head, whispering,

"You did it."

Natara smiled, and leaned against Mal for comfort. But Mal said something that made her pull away.

"So, when should we drive to the community pool?"

Over the next few hours, the small hospital room was filled with visitors. Natara was too tired to actually talk, so she napped while Mal showed off his son. It was still weird saying that; _his _son. He smiled when Captain Yeong held Daniel. A look of calm, serenity passed her face. Captain Yeong was always good with children, a trait just a few knew.

Kai had also come with Officer Young in a close hold, just stopping by to congratulate the couple. Officer Young also asked if taking the dogs while Natara and Mal got used to Daniel. Mal was over-joyed by this and agreed quickly.

Amy and Ken were the last visitors of the day, along with Neha. By this time, Natara was awake.

"He looks so much like Natara," Amy whispered as she got the opportunity to hold Daniel.

"Yeah," Ken agreed and then smirked. "Does he have anything of yours Mal?"

"Well, Natara and I think he might have my eyes, but since a majority of babies are born with blue eyes..."

Natara smiled. "I'm sure he has Mal's eyes. If not, then he'll definitely have his personality."

Mal chuckled. But he was a little jealous. Daniel had Natara's nose, her hair color, though, that was a trait Mal and Natara shared closely. It also seemed like Daniel's face structure was very similar to Natara's. Mal desperately hoped his son had his blue eyes.

"He's such a cute baby," Amy cooed and smiled down at Daniel. He slept peacefully, something he seemed fond of doing lately.

"Why the name Daniel?" Neha asked quietly and Natara sighed. Again, they were drifting towards the 'Community-Pool' bet. She wasn't too happy that she lost the bet.

"Well, it was the only intelligent and creative name I had," Mal answered quickly. "It is better than Bob or Mal Jr."

"You were going to name your kid Mal Jr.?" Ken asked, smiling. "Mal, sometimes I do not get your mind."

"I'm in with you on that one," Natara muttered.

The next morning, (Mal had begged to stay for the night), Mal's cell-phone rang, scaring both him and Natara, and surprisingly, not the baby. He reached for it just in time and flipped it open. Still 'high' on sleep, he greeted the other person.

"Hello?"

"Mal! It's Heather!"

"Oh, hey sis. What's up?"

"Congratulations on the baby! Is Natara awake?" Heather asked, sounding more cheerful than usual.

"She is now, hold on," Mal covered the voice piece on the phone. "Hey Nat, it's Heather. You want to talk to her?"

"Might as well," Natara replied quietly.

"Okay, Heather, I'm putting Natara on the line," Mal said into the phone, standing up to give the device to Natara. He gave the phone to Natara and went to go sit back down on the hospital couch. He only closed his eyes for a moment, when Daniel woke up and began to fuss. He sighed heavily and stood back up, walking over to the crib. He slowly picked him up and rocked him. This was all too new to the street-tough cop. He spoke so quietly, so Natara wouldn't hear.

"Hey Danny. Don't cry, Daddy's here."

_Daddy_. The word felt foreign on his lips. It wasn't a bad feeling, though...

"Daddy will always be here for you," he continued to whisper, "because Daddy loves you more than anything."

Daniel stopped fussing for a moment just to open his eyes slightly to look at Mal. Suddenly, Mal felt the weight of the world drop on his shoulders. This was not like police work. This was going to be much harder than he had ever imagined. And he also loved this baby enough to carry that weight. He was a father now, something he had promised to be really good at if he got the chance. Now that it presented itself in his arms, he wasn't too sure. He started worrying if he was going to be a screw-up like his own father. He would have to try his hardest to make sure he wasn't.


	15. Chapter 15

**Ok, so I woke up this morning hacking and coughing because of my sore throat. I'm starting to think this is more than a sore throat...maybe tonsillitis. Yeah, I think I am going to the doctor's if this continues on Monday.**

** Really, this only ever happened once before in more whole life; waking up early and coughing. But I have my medicine now next to me and a granola bar to eat for breakfast. So I also have a question; this could just mean I'm getting sick because a lot of people at school are getting sore throats and maybe along with my 'Chip Incident' I happened to catch it. Okay, yes I'm trying to get out of seeing the doctors but if it's one thing I hate more than Mondays, it's needles, and needles belong to doctors, and doctors work at hospitals, my least favorite place to visit. Same goes with the Dentist, and yet, not the Orthodontist. **

**So yeah, I'm going to try to make myself better by Monday.**

**REVIEW REPLIES: **

**-cpdx  
>*sigh of relief* I thought you were referring to really short chapters and I was thinking, 'I write 1000 words per chapter. That's not that short.' But no, you're referring to continuation. Well, it really depends if I want to continue with this story. When I first thought of it in September, I knew I only wanted to write one story because I cannot keep a chain of stories going, so help me. But, I did think it would be cool to add a bit of chaos in this chapter because of your review. So, here you go! :D And thanks for the advice and review. I'll consider a sequel.<strong>

**-But I Have Promises To Keep  
>Oh heck yes! Well, kind of, at least. I was born in 1997, but I have an older brother who was born in 1991, and he was like, the king whenever it came to what to watch on TV. Hey Arnold, I barely understood when I was really little, and now I watch it and laugh hysterically. And I have been obsessed with that show for quite awhile. I still haven't seen every single episode, due to laziness. Yeah, when people don't remember any of that stuff, I feel old. Like Banjo Kazooie for Nintendo 64? Not any of the sequels, just the game. That was my favorite game as a little girl and it's still my favorite and after maybe ten years, we finally got it again for the X-Box 360 and I beat it...with the help of my older brother. There's a lot of stuff from the 90's that I remember, thanks to my brother. :)<strong>

**-SVUProductions  
><strong>**Aw, that death was just NASTY! Haha! I had to go through it several times because I either hesitated or performed the wrong action. Although, what Kai was saying during that episode made it all better. I think everybody's got a little Kai in them. :D Thanks for the review!**

**-Barely a Brunette  
>Yeah, stuff like that's always awkward, especially if you have never witnessed it. But I've been in pain where I want to kill someone. (Coughcough Monthly coughcough) So I just practically took what I would say if that pain was increased by ten...And BAM, 'Delivering-Natara'. And like I said, I learn from Fan-fics. So, this is what I've collected from a few iCarly Seddie Fan-Fics all the way to Left 4 Dead Fan-Fics. :)<strong>

**-A bit of a nerd  
>Alright! Yeah, I mean, they aren't getting any younger. I'm seriously worried about Natara though. She's like, afraid of commitment after past experiences with boyfriends. Especially since Mal 'killed' one of them. (I'm secretly hoping he's alive. But it's been awhile now, so most likely, no.) Wouldn't it just be horrible if Mal confessed his love and she rejected because of that little issue. I <em>really<em> hope C.o.D does not consider that at all. But yes, I agree with you and the Fallon Babies. They must be made! (Omigosh...hahah!) Thanks for the review!**

**-mozzi-girl  
>Haha! I love it when I successfully make people laugh! :D And speaking of McDonalds...Haha, I had it last night. I really only like the fries, not the meat. Because seriously...what is the meat made out of? Anyway, back to the review. I can't believe Daniel's here either! It seemed like it was just two days ago when he was still a fetus...okay, grossing myself out, which happens a lot. (By the way, if you're wondering where the name came from, ((because every name I use has a special meaning)) it's from Orange Tie. Not sure if I mentioned this, but Orange Tie's real name is Daniel and he's my brilliant Mal actor, so in a way, if you really think of it, Daniel was named after Mal...IN A WAY! Haha! You always make me smile in your reviews. Oh, and by the way, just because I want to, I have a comment for you. '<em>Molly <em>is a beast. Not just Mal now, Molly is. :D' You're amazing and thank you for the review!**

**So, that concludes today's reviews. Most likely, I'll have another chapter out tomorrow and I decided to do something tomorrow that'll make a couple of people happy. I'm going to work on my vid suggestions! Ok, here's what I have, and please correct me if I'm wrong, or tell me if I forgot you on the list. (I blame the memory loss.) Oh, and can you tell me if you suggested the video? I need to know so I can make a special dedication! :D**

**Fix You-Maltara**

**Any Love Song-Maltara (This one, I was going to do Lily by the Ministry of Magic, but that didn't work out to well. Actually, I have an idea, but it won't exactly be Maltara. It would be about Mal and his daughter, if that's alright, called 'Cinderella'? (Cinderella by Steven Curtis Chapman) I still have to work out the loose ends, but it's a solid idea. :D**

**Thanks for reading. And sorry if the chapter seems incomplete, too fast, or hard to read. Not in my head at the moment. Read and Review? Thank you!**

* * *

><p>The next night, Mal and Natara finally returned home, and just in time too. Natara was beginning to have panic attacks, something Mal didn't like seeing.<p>

It was around three in the morning when they finally relaxed into bed. Daniel hadn't cried previous, they were just freaking out about the little things; for example, what to hide from their two-day-old son. Natara was probably freaking out the most, but Mal had his fair shares of, 'What-if's'.

Just as the two were finally calmed down enough to sleep, Daniel burst into tears, causing yet more stress among the new parents. Mal grumbled under his breath as he got out of bed. The baby was so sweet at the hospital, mainly because the nurses and doctors would take him into a separate room when they wanted some sleep. They were all on their own now, and Mal didn't like it.

Mal picked up the crying infant and rocked him calmly. When his cries didn't decrease, he gave up and handed him to Natara, who shared a similar grumble. They didn't hate their baby in anyway...They just hated the fact that they weren't going to get sleep for a LONG time.

"Honey, it's alright," Natara said quietly, rocking the now screaming baby. "Mal! What do I do?"

"I don't know, Natara! From those stupid parenting channels, it usually has three options; they're hungry, they need a diaper change, or they just want to piss you off!"

"I don't think the third one was an option," Natara growled and turned her attention back to Daniel. "Are you hungry? Is that it?"

"Babies don't talk, Nat," Mal muttered and Natara shot him a death glare. He began to sense this lack of sleep wasn't doing anything good to her, so he sighed heavily.

"Natara, how about you feed Daniel and if he cries at all during the night, I'll take care of him. You need the sleep."

"Says the man who has work tomorrow morning."

"Can't a husband be kind to his wife without getting snide remarks?"

Natara rolled her eyes and strolled into the other room, giving Mal the space he needed to call his sister. When she picked up, after a round of curses, Mal finally asked her what he needed to know.

"Heather, why won't our baby shut up?"

"Well, have you tried feeding it? Changing its diaper? Being nice?" she responded coldly.

"It's hard to be nice to something when you haven't gotten sleep in almost twenty-four hours. But Natara's feeding him right now. What if he still cries?"

"Mal, you're so clueless. How about singing it a lullaby. You used to be in the Church Choir..."

Mal frowned slightly. "I thought we agreed never to bring that up," he whispered.

"It might just be the key to your baby problem, Mal. But hey, what do I know? I'm only the mother of one girl, and the step-mom to another."

"Okay, I get it. You're obviously better than me. Cut me some slack though, this is my first kid, and most likely my last."

"Oh I highly doubt that," she replied and Mal could tell she was smiling.

"Mal!" Natara called, and he sighed.

"I'll call you later, sis. Oh, and sorry for waking you up."

"Just don't let it happen again," Heather responded and ended the call. Mal sighed and joined Natara. Their son was still crying. The thought of him singing Daniel to sleep kept attacking his mind, but he brushed it off.

"Let me just wait this out. Go to bed, Nat," he said.

"Are you sure you want to fall asleep at work again?" Natara asked.

"Hey, it's better than..." Mal stopped himself. If he even suggested the idea of singing, Natara would beg him to do it. "Better than you wasting your sleep. Good night, Nat."

But their good-night's were interrupted when Mal's cell-phone rang, startling Daniel, which made everything ten times worse.

Mal answered it, holding Daniel in one arm and his phone in the other. He tried to speak over the infants screeches.

"You better have a good reason for calling," he snapped into the phone, not bothering to check the Caller ID.

"Um, Mal," Kai's worried voice replied, "you need to come to my apartment quick. Sasha just had puppies."

"You have got to be freaking kidding me," Mal hissed.


	16. Chapter 16

**I absolutely loathe this chapter. I've finally experienced writer's block with this story and I have to say, I think this chapter is crap. I promise the next will be filled with...butterflies? Cookies? Taylor Lautner? I don't know, whatever makes you happy. Ok, I really shouldn't say promise because I have some other confessions. But I will explain a lot after the amazing review replies. :D**

**REVIEW REPLIES:**

**-mozzi-girl  
>Oh my, haha! You are a beast. (Maybe a little more 'beastier' than Mal. :D) And McDonalds...I only like...well, I don't really like anything there but the crispy chicken sub. That's the only thing I eat. :) But my fam is going on a 'cleansing diet'. Apparently, for the next ten days, we're going to drink vegetable and fruit shakes for breakfast lunch and dinner. I seriously am going to miss McDonalds and their fake meat. :)<strong>

**Oh, and just a small question...are you British or Australian or even Canadian? You have a much more sophisticated way of talking...you know...not the normal American way. I've never heard of an injection referred to as a 'jab' and that made me smile. I'm not trying to offend in anyway. :) And anything medical, I agree with you. It's on my hate-list. :D**

**-cpdx  
>You sure? That face usually means trouble to me...<strong>

**-But I Have Promises To Keep  
><strong>**When you said it 'breathed' I knew I could not compete with that. 0.0 Breathing electronic babies gives me the chills. I had to do the same, only our school is very low tech, so instead, we got cloth sacks filled with rice, or in other words, Rice Babies. They're a hit at our school, but I heard they switched to electronic babies, which makes me sad because I wanted to test it out. But my brother is in that class so I guess I get to babysit the baby, something I 'tend' to be good at. Smh. And Rue is a pretty name. I didn't come up with a name for my Rice Baby because we were set in families and the mom and dad got to choose the names. I was the daughter and my friend who I had problems with was my grandma. I think the baby's name was Jojo. I don't hate the name, it just could have been much better...like Rue! Anyways, thanks for telling me this. It made me grin! And thanks for the review. :D**

**-Barely a Brunette  
><strong>**Haha, true, true. And are you still planning on posting it? I would love to read it. :D Thanks for the comment! **

**-A bit of a nerd  
><strong>**Haha, I'll have to see about the Bones thing. Honestly I don't know what 's happened. (Was it between Booth and Bones? And btw...Booth is a babe...:) ) If you want to explain or just tell me the episode it happened or I can just look it up on Wikipedia...:D**

**And you are psychic, and I do not doubt your abilities. :D **

**To add, I've always wanted to hear Mal sing. In fact, in one of my way old fan-fics, I made Mal and Natara have a daughter and she was driving Natara crazy with her crying and I had Mal sing a lullaby. This was before his little 'Choir Secret' was revealed, which made me laugh that I actually was able to 'predict' that. :D**

**Thanks for the review! Love hearing from you!**

**-Things In Ink  
>Haha, your little kid comment made me laugh. Turns out, my baby cousin who 'hates' my guts was just having a bad day. I had to babysit him on Saturday and he kept running up to me and giving me things and then when he got hurt, he ran over to me and hugged my legs and cried. We also threw a bouncy ball around and each time he caught it, he would say, 'Uh-oh!' Oh my...I think I love this little baby now! :D But it is true and I agree with you on that comment.<strong>

**Don't kill me, but I totally forgot about that bet when I wrote Chapter 15! I also forgot about the Skylar/Kai/Amy incident, so I'll try to fit some of that in an epilogue or somethin'...and GIANTS ALL THE WAY, BABY. Haha, I don't care for sports. I only root for one team only; BYU. It is a home team after all. Even then, I'm only interested in BYU Football...*shrug* Thanks for the review!**

**-SVUProductions  
>Haha, math isn't so bad when you add awesomeness to the equation. Wish all Algebra problems were like that...I'd be pro. :) Thanks for the review and the awesome new equation!<strong>

**So that's it! (If you reviewed another story, thank you, but I won't be replying if the story is already completed. However, if you reviewed Haltalia, I'll try to respond in my next chapter. If I can remember. :D)**

**So, here are the confessions;  
><strong>**I never worked on any Sims music video. Turns out, when you bring a Laptop to your grandmas on SuperBowl Sunday, all the little kids crowd around you. Gah! I had to stop shortly after I opened my Laptop because those blasted little kids ticked me off. So yeah, no videos. I'll try to finish the last of my video requests.**

**ALSO, THIS IS MY LAST CALL, IF YOU SUGGESTED A VIDEO, PLEASE TELL ME! I HAVE:**

**Love Song-Maltara (This person requested any love song, but I kind of altered it a bit.)**

**Fix You-Maltara (This person suggested Fix You by Coldplay.)**

**IF YOU WERE SURE YOU SENT ME A REQUEST, TELL ME. _I WILL NOT BE TAKING REQUESTS UNTIL THESE VIDS ARE COMPLETED! THANK YOU!_**

**A little bit about this weekend;  
><strong>**Turns out, I couldn't see Woman in Black with my friend. Apparently, my Grandma bought tickets to Hugo, _which I had already seen._ We went out for lunch as a huge family and saw Hugo. All the while, I felt like I was about to barf. My throat was killing me as well, which didn't help anything. It was pretty fun though. Hugo is a great movie, even if you haven't read the books. :D**

**Also, my friend is grounded until Thursday. She is unable to have any connection with me or anyone else and she's the one I usually vent to. I might need someone to rant to this week, so I hope you guys don't mind. If you don't want to read any of it, you can skip to the story.**

**To close, I have some great news. My throat is healed. (Just in time, too!) It's not sore anymore, but I still have a nasty cough and a runny nose, something a lot of people in my family are getting. So no doctors tomorrow. :D I'm so happy. Also, I got this in before midnight (my time) and that means there will possibly be a post tomorrow. I am not sure. I might make my 'break-days' Mondays due to the release of a new CoD episode. **

**Sorry again about the chapter. I wanted to get through it so I can actually finish this story. Ok, so I'm like half asleep right now, so I'm going to stop before I release my darkest secrets to the world. Thank you for reading and enjoy the story. Review, read, criticize in a friendly manner?**

* * *

><p>Mal and Natara were on the scene. Natara held the baby carrier holding Daniel, who had stopped crying on the car ride. Kai led them into the living room where Sasha was lying on her side and one puppy lay next to her.<p>

"Aren't dogs supposed to have multiple puppies?" Mal asked.

"Yeah, that's the thing," Kai said, "you see..."

"Kai!" Officer Young called out, coming in from the back room. She was a little shocked to see Mal and Natara standing in the middle of the room with the baby carrier, but she shook it off. "Kai," she continued and shook her head.

Kai's face fell and instantly, he swore loudly. Mal was surprised that he didn't wake up the baby.

"What's wrong?" Mal asked instantly. "Did something happen?"

"Mal," Officer Young began, but for the first time, Mal could tell she was unable to speak. Her eyes were filled with sadness, something no one had seen before.

"Skylar," Natara began, "what happened?"

Kai spoke for her. "There's a reason why there aren't any other puppies."

Natara seemed to catch on, but Mal was still clueless. Natara covered her mouth and shook her head. "Please don't tell me..."

Kai only nodded. "We tried, Natara! We really did! Well, Skylar did, but I helped!"

"What on earth is going on?" Mal finally called out.

"Mal," Skylar said, her voice quivering slightly. "The other puppies didn't make it."

Mal's mind didn't process this fast enough. He never liked dogs, but even this was a little disappointing. He then thought of how he would feel if the doctor had come up to him and Natara and announced that Daniel didn't make it. He saw how crushed he would be. When he was thrown back into reality, he started looking for Diggs.

"Where is he?" he asked and Skylar pointed across the room. Diggs rested on a couch, watching everything go down. Mal did not see any sign of sarcasm, anger, or even happiness on Diggs's face. In fact, the mutt looked emotionless. His eyes were trained on his puppy, ready to protect if anyone reached down to touch him. That's when Mal noticed a chain around Diggs. "Why is he..."

"He tried to attack Skylar when she picked up the puppies. We had to have some way of confining him so we could assist Sasha and the puppies. Somehow, five of the six had complications and passed away before we were able to save them. Niko here is the only survivor," Kai explained.

"Niko?" Natara asked and Skylar nodded.

"It's Greek. It means 'Victory of the People,' and considering Niko is the only one that survived..."

Natara swallowed hard. "Skylar, do you think you could keep the dogs for a few more days? Oh, and do not give Niko away."

"You're kidding, right?" Kai asked. "He's the _runt_ of the litter."

Mal flinched when he heard that word; _runt_. He never liked it. It may have something to do with the fact that he was always considered one in Elementary School, that was, until he proved his strength. His mind drifted towards other things like Daniel in school. Would he pounce the other kids like he did, or was he like Natara and talk them down?

"Just because he's a runt, that doesn't mean it classifies him as 'useless'," Mal added, trying not to over-react.

A heavy silence drifted through the air. Mal glanced at his wife, then to his friends...well, actually, these two were never really considered his friends. Kai was close, but not on the line.

"Well then," Kai continued. "Maybe you and Natara should be heading home. Daniel needs his sleep and so do you two. We'll take care of the dogs, and I guess we'll watch over Niko." He led the exhausted couple to the door. "Don't worry about any of it, alright?"

"Thanks Kai," Natara said and gave him a short hug, something that surprised Mal and Kai. "And remember, you two tried your best."

As Mal and Natara exited, Natara let out a small sigh. "It's a shame about the puppies. I wonder how Diggs and Sasha will take it..."

"If I learned anything over the past few months I've been with them both," Mal muttered, "I think Kai will take it the worst. Not the dogs...Kai..."


	17. Chapter 17

**Don't like this chapter one bit, just sayin'. It's incredibly dull, but I think the next chapter will be just fine. Oh, and I think there will only be two or three more chapters. Then I can finish and continue Haltalia! :D **

**REVIEW REPLIES:  
><strong>

**-A bit of a nerd  
><strong>**Oh! So that's what I've been hearing. But I thought Booth was married and had a son. Did they divorce? Or are they still married? And that _was_ a pretty good game last night. :D**

**-But I Have Promises To Keep  
>Yeah, you'll see a bond that plays out with Mal and Niko very soon. :D It's pretty cute, in my unprofessional opinion. :)<strong>

**-Barely a Brunette  
>If you ever decide to post it though...:D And really? Man, I just thought of Niko from Percy Jackson. I actually didn't know it meant Victory of the People until I searched it out. But that is a little creepy. Again, great minds think a like.<strong>

**-SVUProductions  
>I wish I could promise a happy next chapter...And haha, thanks for the 'Bones Help' suggestion. While I'm also asking A bit of a nerd, it would be nice to get a little more insight on who exactly the main character, (I want to say Bones...unless I am completely mistaken...Like I said, I only listened to it.) is and what the whole series is about. I just know that the main character is skilled with bones...Haha, I am so confused.<strong>

**-mozzi-girl  
>Thanks for stopping by! Well, about the name, like I said to Barely a Brunette, I just took it from Percy Jackson (though, that one is spelled Nico, not Niko). When I found out that the meaning was Victory of the People, I thought that was awesome because like I said, every name I choose has a meaning. :D<strong>

**Haha! I was close. Well, it is fancy to me. Down here in good ol' Utah, we speak like hilbilies. We Utahans are CRAZY when it comes to grammar and pronunciation. We say creek like 'crik'. My grandpa says Potatoes like 'taters' and so does my dad. I often use ya'll when addressing a group of people. So it's always great hearing someone from outside of Utah or the country talk because it sounds a heck of a lot more intelligent than what I'm used to. Besides, the way you talk is awesome. :D**

**And I might be quitting the diet thing. Not as fun as I thought it would be. I like eating what I'm eating right now. I mean, I'm average weight for a girl my height and age, so I really shouldn't be stressing on dieting. But my dad...you gotta love 'em...he's making the whole family eat healthier...which I don't mind. But thanks for the good wishes. :D**

**That's it for the reviews. So, like I said, I don't like this chapter. I've been getting lazy because I know I'm nearing the end of the story and I really want to finish so I can stop panicking about this story every day.**

**So, I guess it's kind of a sad day here for almost anyone in Utah. We've experienced a...um...tragic loss, I guess you could say, of two little boys. I don't really know the story, but apparently, a man had killed his wife and wasn't exactly proven guilty. Yesterday, he had his kids come for a supervised visit, but he locked the supervisor out of the house and blew up his home with him and his kids in it. It's all over the news and it's really frightening to think about it. Kind of makes me want to be a lawyer now so I can put freaks like him behind bars. But yeah, I didn't even know the family, but it's been a pretty rough two days already just thinking about it.**

**So, I was watching a commercial the other day about a car surviving the apocalypse and that got me thinking of a question to ask today. I don't really expect any answers since it's a very dull-minded question. (Speaking of the apocalypse, I just heard very creepy music come from upstairs...)**

**Some say the apocalypse will bring no electricity, some say werewolves and vampires (Okay, Plastic Fork said that.) and I personally think Zombies. (No, I do not really believe in the apocalypse.) But what do you think 2012 will bring us and the bigger, question is...Are you prepared? **

**Reason for my strange question is not only because of the commercial, but because I'm writing a story about it using people from my class and I need ideas. **

**Enough with this ranting! Enjoy the story. Reviews? Constructive Criticism?**

* * *

><p>Each night was a competition for Daniel. 'Let's See if I Can Get Daddy to Break,' is what Mal called this annoying game. Sometimes, the game was too much, he almost gave in, but he was prideful and did not dare let his son win, not yet, at least.<p>

Things at the station had heated up since Natara's leave. A new, tougher case had been tossed onto Mal's desk, in high hopes that he and Ken could solve it. It was another drug-dealer case, something Mal had grown accustomed to. After all, they were drug-dealers, they were easy to predict since he and Ken had both known a few.

This case was difficult; much more difficult. Without many options to feed off of, Mal had to bring Diggs into play. Captain Yeong ignored all of his complaints and thus, making Mal having to work with Diggs.

Mal, Ken and Diggs lounged in Mal's office, scanning over ideas that they hadn't yet put into place.

"Is Diggs trained to sniff out drugs?" Ken asked.

"Yes...but he's not going to do it," Mal replied. "Diggs is a search and destroy kind of mutt. Mostly destroy."

"Why don't we call Natara then; see if she has any plans?"

"I already told you, Ken. Nat is most likely sleeping. That's all she's been doing since Daniel arrived."

"And all you've been lacking. Okay, so our best options are out of the drawing..."

Mal considered this and glanced at Diggs. "I don't suppose you've got any ideas, Diggs?"

The mutt didn't respond, like usual. But his eyes were filled with confusion, hate, and...was that sorrow? Mal sat up straight, earning a glance from Ken as he stared at the dog. "Hey, Diggs, are you alright?" Mal asked instantly.

"Probably still mourning the loss of the puppies," Ken muttered, taking his eyes off of Mal and returning to looking at the ceiling.

"Diggs," Mal began, but was cut off when Officer Young ran into his office.

"Mal, Ken, get up," she hissed. "You two are needed immediately down at the warehouse by the pier."

"Same warehouse that involved Dr. Rose?" Ken asked and she nodded.

"Turns out, we've found our guy."

It was a moment to celebrate, but they hesitated. "Skylar, how exactly did you..." Mal said, but once again, was cut off by Skylar.

"Kai. He managed to make a deal. He thinks we'll be meeting him at the warehouse, when really, it'll only be you three."

"Why just us three?" Mal asked and Officer Young rolled her eyes.

"Because, _Detective_," she spat, "if you were a drug dealer and you saw several police vehicles surrounding a supposedly abandoned warehouse, would you go anywhere near there?"

"I guess not," Mal said, biting his lower lip.

"Point proven. Now you three get down there as fast as you can! No waiting!"

Mal didn't want to argue so he, Ken, and Diggs ran out the door. Once inside the police vehicle, Ken cursed under his breath. "Why in the name of all that's holy does the little intern cop think she's our boss now?"

Mal shrugged. "Maybe it's because she's dating the 'Almighty Kai Kalaba,'" he replied.

Ken raised an eyebrow. "He is? Man, I wonder how Amy's handling. I mean, if I were her and my partner turned on me for some other person, I would definitely pound their face in."

"You say that about everyone, Ken."

"Yeah, but I mean it!"

"Of course you do," Mal muttered. "But what happened to the threat you gave me when I started dating Natara. I mean, after all, you thought she was a babe and me, your best friend, went behind your back and..."

"We _all _know what you did, Mal. But that's nothing. Amy's fragile. Seeing her upset makes me upset."

Mal smiled slightly. "Am I detecting the slightest hint of a crush, Mr. Greene?"

Ken shook his head quickly. "No! No, of course not. She's too young. Even...Even if I did _like _her in that way, it still wouldn't work. She likes Kai, and I know it."

"You never know, Ken," Mal said with a smile. "True love is an experimental idiot."


	18. Chapter 18

**Yay! A really long chapter! :D I think I might add an epilogue since this actually is the last chapter of this portion in their lives. I think a few of you will like the chapter because I personally loved writing it. **

**REVIEW REPLIES:**

**-SVUProductions  
>Dang, I keep forgetting those details. I'll make sure I'll include the KaiAmy/Ken/Skylar conflict in the epilogue.**

**And is it just me, or does Booth sound a little bit like Mal with the 'all-too-sexy' thing going on. And thank goodness I got some of Brennan's name right. I'll just call her Bones. And you know what, Imma check out the series after I'm done with all this writing I have to do. Thanks for the review and info.**

**-But I Have Promises To Keep  
>I made a funny! Oh my goodness, I'm so glad someone actually found that funny. It was technically late when I wrote that and my mind wasn't thinking clearly. (As if it ever did.)<strong>

**And as for you Mayan Calender comment, I laughed out loud. My friends thought I was crazy, but hey, some just don't know good comedy. :) And I read this comic once and this Mayan guy held up the calender and he said, "Aw, no, there's not enough room to finish." And the chief Mayan replied with a, "Hehe, that's really going to freak out someone one day." So yeah, I believe either one. But the end of the world? Not really. I mean, there are some possible things that I won't get too in depth with because it doesn't really belong on this site, so I'll just leave it at that. Have you seen that new car commercial about the end of the world and how one guy didn't survive because he drove a Ford? And I believe there was a Quit Smoking ad on here that read, 'The End is Near...' and the cigarette was purposely made to look like an asteroid. I found that hilarious so I recorded it. :D But yeah, 2012=Phony in my opinion. **

**-Barely a Brunette  
>Whoo! I didn't realize that. A majority of them are from me, though, before I decided to reply in chapters. :D<strong>

**And it really is true. I mean, A bit of a nerd can somehow read my mind and knows exactly what's going to happen. In other words, great minds think alike! :D Thanks for the review!**

**-A bit of a nerd  
>I don't know about Kailar yet. (Awesome name! Haha!) But since you are the psychic...:D <strong>

**And even though I haven't really seen Bones, I've adored the Bones/Booth pairing. I mean, it's like Maltara. You see them and you automatically think, 'They should be together.' :D Thanks for the review!**

**-mozzi-girl  
><strong>**Why thank you! I do try to try my best. :D**

**And I tend to lean towards improper British anyway. I think it just sounds cool. In fact, call me a pedophile...stalker...creep, but my friends and I had to create a skit using Foreign Phrases and we chose to do a remake of Harry Potter. (Me being Harry. And an Edward Cullen Cut-Out being Voldemort.) And my friend told us we had to use British accents and I totally thought of you and started pronouncing words like you told me you did. Like I called myself 'Harreh' and went on with that kind of style. Not to cause any offense, or anything, because I adore the British accent as much as I adore Maltara. :D**

**Oh my...the Apocalypse gets better and better. Can't wait to add all of this into my story. :D And thanks for the review! :D**

**-MaltaraFluff647  
>So glad you like Haltalia! :D<strong>

**Anyway, about the age difference. I don't know, it could work. I mean, my friend's parents have a pretty lengthy age difference and they're pretty happy. And a woman I know was 25 years younger than her husband and they had an amazing life together. Again, I must quote myself, 'Love is an experimental idiot.' But it would be a little awkward. I don't know. We'll have to wait for the epilogue. :D**

**Thanks for the review!**

**And that's it for right now. Just want to fill you in a bit. Okay, I know I am forgetting a few things, and I promise I will add them to the epilogue. Plus, I feel like I rushed a bit, but either way, I adore this chapter most of all because it is the most important one yet. It may also be the saddest, but I still think it's awesome.**

**Yup, and that's about it for my ranting today. Thanks for reading, reviewing, answering my questions, and so on and so forth. Remember, there will be an epilogue. :D**

**Read, review, constructive criticism? Thank you!**

* * *

><p>Natara had woken up from a nap shortly after Mal had gotten the case call. Instinctively, she strolled over to Daniel's crib and looked down. They were right, he did look a lot like her. Except his piercing, blue eyes. He slept peacefully and that made her smile. She ran her finger across his cheek and giggled softly when he yawned.<p>

"I'm starting to regret my bad attitude," she whispered. She couldn't peel her eyes away from her baby boy. She still couldn't believe it had only been a week. "You're so...perfect," she continued to whisper. "Just like your daddy. Your daddy is amazing in every way. He could have left me, you know." She seemed to tear up at this idea, so she changed the subject. "I bet you'll be just like him; strong, brave, handsome..."

Daniel responded with a small coo and that practically melted Natara's heart. She couldn't even begin to think why she didn't want this baby. Sure, things were hectic at the beginning, but while it calmed down, she saw Daniel for the first time; not behind drooping eyes.

"Mommy will be right back," she said quietly and quietly stepped out of the room. Mal had cleaned up the apartment, apparently; or at least made an attempt. At least the floor could be seen. She walked through the small 'home' and into the kitchen. She was just about to grab some water when someone knocked on the door. She flinched, hoping Daniel wouldn't awaken, and thank goodness he didn't. Not really caring about her appearance, Natara answered the door. Amy stood there, looking down-trodden. She had a fake smile upon her face, though.

"Hey Natara," she greeted.

Natara frowned slightly. "What's the matter, Amy? You seem upset?"

Amy shrugged. "Oh...It's...It's nothing, I'm just...Thinking."

"Thinking huh?" Natara asked. "Well, why don't you come on in. I could use some company."

"Actually, I'm just here to deliver a message from Mal," she said quietly.

"Oh really? What's up?"

Amy sifted through her bag for her phone and pulled it out. She opened it and read,

_'Tell Natara that I might not be home until later tonight. We got a new call on the case and it sounds pretty big. Thank you!'_

Natara paused for a minute and then nodded. "Thanks for telling me, Amy. Though I don't get why he didn't text me."

"He said he tried but you haven't responded. Your phone might be dead," Amy replied, just as quietly as she had before.

"Okay, Amy, what's wrong? I'm not buying any of the, 'I'm Okay,' business. Did someone hurt you?" Natara asked as she forcefully, yet gently, led Amy into the apartment.

"Well...I suppose I can't hide anything from an FBI profiler. Yes, someone did hurt me, but not physically."

Natara knew what she was talking about. "Kai?"

Amy nodded sadly. "He keeps talking about how _perfect_ Skylar is. It annoys me so much, but I don't want to seem jealous. It hurts to see him so happy while I'm feeling...So depressed."

"Amy, I think it's time you learned a little bit about guys..." Natara said and began a new lecture.

-C.O.D-

Mal had his back against the warehouse. Following behind was Ken, and behind him, Diggs.

"He should be in the building," Ken said. "Why isn't he?"

"Maybe we didn't look hard enough," Mal suggested.

"Diggs would have smelled something, Mal!" Ken growled. "Look, do you want to get home before midnight? Why don't we just call it a night."

"We'll call it a night when I get my bad guy!" Mal hissed and that was the cue for Diggs to bark wildly as a man stepped from the bushes. He didn't seem like the drug-dealer type, with his perfectly pressed suit and kind smile. Of course, the smile wasn't of kindness, more or less, but of pure and ultimate hate.

"And that's your plan, Detective Fallon?" he asked. His voice was smooth, like one of a lawyer who always won the battle. His black hair was spiked and he had electric blue eyes, something most people would find convincing and just amusing. "You're Jacob's boy, right? An idiot, he was."

Mal clenched his jaw, trying to resist from throwing a 'smart' remark. "Jacob is my father, yes."

"You hated your father?" the man asked, his smile getting more wild.

"I never truly hated my father," Mal admitted, reaching slowly for his gun. "He was a horrible man, but I will never hate him."

The drug-dealer chuckled viciously. "You're just like him. You know, Detective, your father and I used to work along-side each other. A very persuasive man, but like I said, and idiot. He didn't know when to stop."

Diggs growled and got in the stance ready to pounce, something Mal was baffled at. This dog, the same dog that wanted to rip his face off, was just standing up for him. He wasn't sure if he liked it or not.

"You're pathetic Fallon," the man hissed and whipped out his gun the same time Mal and Ken did.

"You shoot," Ken began, "and we shoot. It's police code."

"And do you actually follow police code? I know Detective Fallon has had some problems with it," the man said, resuming his cool stature. "Am I right?"

"You have no place in giving away anyone's past," Mal muttered. "Now, put down your weapon and we'll handle this fairly."

"Oh, I don't think fairly is how anything is going to be handled from here on out," the drug-dealer roared and he shot his gun. Instantly, Mal fell to the ground, writhing in pain. He placed his hands on his knee and pulled it back, amazed at how much blood could come from his kneecap.

"Mal!" Ken called and he turned his gun on the dealer, but two brawny men came up from behind and pulled Ken into a death-grip. "Hey! Get you're hands off of me, you apes!"

The dealer smirked and then pointed his gun at Mal, making sure it was level with his chest; a coup de grâce. Mal couldn't process what was going on. The pain prevented his mind from thinking of anything.

"I am going to kill you and your friend. Then I'll flee the country," he said in an almost assuring tone. "Don't worry, Detective. The pain will go away soon."

If Mal could think of anything, it would be the constant wonder of where Diggs was. It seemed like he had disappeared due to being frightened out of his mind. Mal did not know Diggs was much more than that. He also didn't know that when the dealer pulled the trigger, Diggs feared Mal's death. Mal didn't see Diggs run up to him at the last second and take the impact of the bullet. But Mal heard the pained whimper and knew something had gone horribly wrong.

Ken managed to kick the guards away and deliver one final shot towards the dealer. It caught him in the forehead, cutting off his maniacal laugh. The guards, seeing that their master was dead, decided to book it. Ken didn't bother with them, but with his friend and his friend's dog.

"Mal, buddy," he said, kneeling next to the detective. "Stay with me."

"It's just my knee, Ken," Mal groaned and winced at the sudden shock-wave of pain. "I heard a whimper. Is everything alright?"

Ken looked towards Diggs, a gaping bullet-wound had ripped through his vest. All chances of survival were futile for the suffering mutt. "I'll call an ambulance and have Natara meet us at the hospital. Try to stay calm, alright?" Ken said and he stood up and walked away, pulling out his phone and dialing the all-too familiar number of 9-1-1.

Mal turned his head over to one side and noticed Diggs. Not knowing the difference of him being hurt and healthy, he smiled slightly. "I knew you'd come to comfort me, Diggs," he said, before darkness overcame his vision.

-C.O.D-

When Mal opened his eyes, he loathed the sight that greeted him. Pale white hospital walls, ugly tiled floor, and a clipboard with his analysis on it. Grunting slightly, Mal struggled to sit up.

"You're awake!" Natara called out, scaring the living daylights out of Mal.

"Oh my...Natara!" Mal growled, "you scared me!"

"I'm sorry...I'm just so relieved that you're alive," Natara replied, gripping his hand. "I thought I lost you when Ken said you had gotten shot along with...Along with Diggs."

Mal frowned slightly. "Wait...Did I hear that correctly? Did Diggs really get shot too?"

Natara looked pained. Her eyes were puffy and red, something Mal hated seeing. "Natara is..."

"Mal," Natara began, "Diggs was shot in the heart. The vest didn't stop the bullet in time."

Mal froze. What? He still thought he didn't hear any of that correctly, or at least he wanted to believe that he didn't. _Diggs dead? _Those words didn't belong together. Diggs was hit by a car and he still lived! He somehow managed to live with Mal, and he even had his own family. Then, the bigger thought occurred to Mal.

'_Diggs died to protect me. He died so that I could return to my family..._' he thought and he felt sick.

"Diggs," he whispered and Natara shook her head.

"They tried to save him," she continued. "They really tried, but it was too late."

Mal was in shock...pure shock. Sure, he _loathed _dogs, but this really upset him. Diggs was a father, like himself, of a little puppy who probably wouldn't be accepted among the other dogs. Maybe it was the same for Daniel. Mal stared ahead, trying to think this through, but found his thoughts interrupted by Diggs's face. "Diggs," he muttered.

Natara gulped back a sob, and squeezed Mal's hand. "The good news is the dealer is dead."

"The dealer might have been a dad though," Mal growled. "What will his kids think when their mom comes to them and says their father will not be returning home? It's just like what would've happened if I was killed along with Diggs today. Daniel won't have a strong father figure to rely off of."

"Mal," Natara whispered, but he stopped her.

"It's horrible, Natara! I can't believe we would do something like this. Diggs is dead. The dealer is dead, and yet, I'm the only dad that gets to live. None of this is fair!"

It might have been the hospital drugs acting up, but Mal couldn't control his curses. He was ashamed. His dignity had been stolen. One dad was dead and so was another. (He was positive that the dealer was a father.) It also might have been the fact that Mal's father was pathetic and left him and his mom. Then his mom died. Mal never really had parents. He clenched his fist and turned away from Natara.

"Mal, you need to rest," she said calmly, stroking the side of his cheek. "Diggs and the dealer may be gone now, but we've still got you. You're all that matters to me and Daniel."

"And Niko," Mal added quietly.

Natara couldn't help but smile. "And Niko," she repeated and kissed him softly. "I love you so much, Mal."

"I love you more," Mal responded, though his mind was still set on the father-less figures.

Natara took notice of this and smiled slightly. "Stay here for a minute," she said and Mal smirked.

"I can't move, Nat," he replied and Natara giggled as she exited the room. Minutes later, she came back with Daniel in her arms. He was calm and smiling, something Mal had been anxious to see. Natara gently placed Daniel in Mal's arms and Mal smiled at his son.

"Hey buddy," Mal whispered and Daniel cooed softly. Mal chuckled and sat back a little. "You know what, Nat?"

"Yeah?"

"It feels like I'm the one who had Daniel."

Natara raised an eyebrow. "And why is that?"

"I'm in the hospital bed...I'm holding Daniel...I'm doped up on drugs...and I am in pain."

Natara smiled and sat next to Mal. "You know, I'm almost positive he got your humor," she replied and moved her seat closer.

The family sat closely together, sharing this singular moment. Who knows; they might not see each other once Mal heads back on the field. He might actually get killed. But they didn't worry too much about that. It was the here and now that they focused on.


	19. Epilogue

**Short and rushed, what else can I say? I had a little trouble with the Kai/Skylar/Amy/Ken conflict and decided to 'Go with my gut.' :D I actually am considering a sequel now. I might have to wait for a few days to actually see if a sequel is possible. If you guys have any suggestions, or even want to make the story and use my characters, all you have to do is ask or tell me. :D **

**REVIEW REPLIES:**

**cpdx  
>Thank you! :D<strong>

**SVUProductions  
>...Yeah, I didn't expect any threats. Haha! (But seriously, that made me smile. :D)<strong>

**Glad you laughed at my 'on-the-spot' joke. :D And I'll most definitely check them out when I know the plot-line a little better. **

**Barely a Brunette  
>When you added all those extra names, excluding Diggs's, I realized how much Pain I caused in the last chapter. Man, now I feel bad. Haha!<strong>

**And I'm considering a sequel, despite the fact that this wasn't supposed to continue on to another story. :D But come on, it's hard to resist.**

**But I Have Promises To Keep  
>Awww! That's horrible. I've heard a couple stories about that and it makes me respect dogs. Unlike Mal...but at least he gains a little respect for them at the end. :D My uncle has stories about some of the dogs at the station, but most of the time, it's, 'Hey, who wants to see Vito [his dog] pee in Grandpa's bushes?' :) It's sad when I hear any stories about policemen or police dogs dying, mostly because I have an uncle and a dog who are both in the force.<strong>

**And about your sequel idea, I really liked it, but the problem with that would be Niko would be too old to be Daniel's dog. I would love to defy all the laws of physics to make him his dog, but that would be odd. And then Niko being Mal's dog, I think I can possibly make that possible. :D And your Skyrim relation made me laugh hysterically. I've never played it, but I heard that joke so many times and I never knew the significance behind it! I am now going to write that down. :D Genius!**

**A bit of a nerd  
>I've never made someone cry with <em>words <em>before. Unless you count me picking on my younger bros when I was younger, (because I'm such a freakin angel now and I NEVER pick on my bros. *sarcasm*) But making someone cry just made me feel...no offense...awesome. :D And I seriously love anything by Following My Own Footsteps! And what exactly did you think would happen at the end? I'm curious. :D**

**And I more than agree with you on that. Haha! Maltara forever! :D**

**mozzi-girl  
>Ooh! I'm good. :D Haha, but thanks for the comment. I seriously thought it was one of my more...clever endings. And about the skit, oh, I love using Harreh. It's awesome. But along with my hillbilly accent, it sounds hilarious. I should probably tape it and post it on YouTube. ;D<strong>

**MaltaraFluff647  
>Ooh, do you remember the movie name? It sounds like something I would like. :D And believe me, killing Diggs off was not one of my favorite things. Maybe I should have left out the family connection, but hey, it made the story a little more special. :D<strong>

And age being just a number, agreed. Unless the man is 40 and the girl is a teen. That's wrong in my opinion. You know, if the dude is a PedoBear. But you know, later twenties to later forties, doesn't bother me.

**That's it for the reviews on this story! I am finally done and can stop worrying about this. Yes, I have started the next chapter of Haltalia and I'll make sure that's the first thing I post before I post another story.**

**As for my cold...after I ranted about it on Facebook, I somehow felt a lot better. I mean, I might be addicted to cough drops now, but I'm just glad it's finally blowing over. :)**

**Also, I am thinking of yet another short story involving maybe Mal's daughter becoming deaf and since his wife, (I don't know who should take that position other than Natara and I kind of want a little twist to this. So not Natara. Possibly Blaise or another girl.) has left, he needs to learn Sign Language. And it just so happens that Natara knows a lot and he learns from her. I know there's already a fic out there involving ASL, and I am not meaning to steal any ideas. This thought occurred to me while I was actually in ASL today, and I thought it would be a cute idea. I still need to play with it, but I'll see what I can do. :D **

**So, I thought I would actually never say this, but I present to you, the finale of Officer Diggs. (I'm sorry if the epilogue is crap. I really wanted to get rid of this story so I can actually take a break and not have something to freak out over for the next few days.) Read and Review? (I'll most likely reply to your review in my Haltalia chapter. :D ) THANK YOU!**

* * *

><p>Years passed. The Fallon family photo-book was almost filled with happy memories, and sad ones. The first pictures, however, were of Diggs and his life with Mal. He still hated the way that he was a jerk to him.<p>

Mal had recovered after the incident, but it left him with a limp. Sure, he was a little depressed that his field work had decreased, but he was able to spend time with his three year old son, Daniel, and the love of his life.

Mal often took days off in order to watch his son. He loved playing with him because he felt like a little kid again. He especially liked giving him the little police cars he had received from his father. Daniel's face lit up each time he got a new one.

Things changed over the course of three years. The Fallons got a bigger home and took in Sasha and Niko, Niko becoming Mal's new K-9. Niko was like Diggs, in a way; mysterious, but kind. He loved Mal and pounced every time he came through the door. Mal, Daniel, and Niko often chilled on Sundays in front of the TV, examining a particularly exciting football game. After what happened to Diggs, Mal grew a certain respect for the dogs.

Natara had changed slightly too. She worked a little harder than Mal, but was fine with it. Often, they talked about a second child, but they knew at the moment and at their current age, it might not be a great idea. But Natara kept begging and begging and soon enough, she was eight months pregnant with what they hoped to be a little girl. When she announced her pregnancy, Mal remembered the bet they had made three years ago and cursed. So that very night she announced the big news, Mal decided to take her out for 'dinner.' She was confused when they went in a complete opposite way and drove to the pool instead. Her eyes widened at the sight and she shook her head.

"I am not jumping in," she hissed. "It's February, Mal. I might get hypothermia."

"Yeah, yeah," Mal said with a smile as he dragged her towards the pool. "But you made a bet, and you always keep your promises."

"Mal Fallon!"

Mal laughed as she tried to pull away, but he was stronger. "Mal I will call the cops!"

"Honey, you're talking to the SFPD Head Detective. I wouldn't be making _any _threats."

Mal had informed the owner of the pool to fill it up so he could use it. Natara nearly flipped when she saw the water. "Can't we do this after I have the baby?" she asked quickly.

"Nope! This debt of gratitude..."

"Gratitude! Mal, this is assault!"

Mal just laughed in reply and soon they were at the pool's edge. With a quick movement, he shoved Natara, but she had something planned out the moment she was about to topple over. She grabbed the collar of Mal's shirt and he gasped when she pulled him down with her.

_SPLASH!_

Mal came up for air the same time Natara did. He was freezing cold now.

"Now _that _was assault," he growled, spitting out some excess water.

"No, it was payback," Natara replied with a smirk. And she swam up to him and their lips met. They never could stay mad at each other for too long.

As for the station; Skylar had to be transferred to Centerscore. Kai always had a feeling she would be taken away from him. Their goodbye was short and depressing. They both decided it would be best to split up and find other people.

Kai felt as if this was 'Kara Yan' all over again. He didn't like it. The healing process was long and gruesome, but once he smiled again and meant it, Amy assured him everything would be okay.

"Maybe she wasn't the right girl," Amy had said in the lab one afternoon.

"I always think I have it planned out with relationships," Kai murmured. "I finally am able to date a pretty girl, and when things are going out alright, I lose her. I'm starting to think I'm hopeless."

"Oh come on, Kai," Amy assured with a smile, "you're not hopeless at all. You never know, the girl you are going to marry could even be in this station. All it takes is a little heart and trust to find her."

"You're right," Kai said. The lab was silent for a moment as Amy continued analyzing a sketch. Kai finally spoke up, breaking the awkward silence. "Hey Amy, would you mind going out to dinner one of these nights?"

Amy, shocked, blushed a little. "What?"

"You don't have to say yes, because honestly, I think you might be better off without me. But I wanted to know if you'll go out to dinner with me."

She had been waiting for this moment since Skylar interfered. She tried to hide her excitement and smiled calmly. "That would be fun. I would love to go to dinner with you."

Kai smiled and the lab fell back into that awkward silence stage, but they kept their grins. Things were working out between the 'Lab Geeks'.

Ken wasn't exactly pleased to discover this, but he cared for Amy in a way most people didn't. He just wanted her to be happy. You could also imagine his feelings when Kai asked Amy to marry him and she accepted joyfully. Sure, it ripped his heart a little, but when he saw her tie the knot with Kai, he smiled knowing she was most likely in good hands.

Even though he wouldn't be with Amy, Ken didn't want to be alone the rest of his life. He started thinking more about marriage and eventually met a girl. She was actually a Kindergarten teacher, and Mal always joked that she could teach Ken a thing or two.

Yeong decided to step down a year after the Diggs incident, having Mal take the role of Captain. She and her family moved away from San Francisco and to Florida.

So, I guess you could say everything wrapped up nicely; Mal is a father of a little boy and a child-on-the-way and also Head Honcho of the SFPD. Amy married her crush and Ken also married. Natara was a mother and a hard-worker at the SFPD. And Niko, son of Diggs and Sasha, was still training to become a better police dog.


End file.
